Last Updated: Monday, 05 June 2023, 10:55 GMT

Tajiks detained in Turkey after allegedly trying to join IS

Publisher Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Publication Date 13 July 2015
Cite as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Tajiks detained in Turkey after allegedly trying to join IS, 13 July 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/55b5f47a23.html [accessed 5 June 2023]
DisclaimerThis is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

July 13, 2015

By RFE/RL's Tajik Service

DUSHANBE – Forty-five foreigners have been arrested in Turkey after allegedly trying to enter Syria illegally to join the Islamic State (IS) militant group, Turkish media said.

The Dogan news agency reported that the group, including women and children, were detained in Istanbul and the southeastern city of Gaziantep near the Syrian border between July 10 and July 12.

The news agency said the majority of the foreigners were Tajik nationals, but it didn't give exact figures.

The Tajik Embassy in Ankara and officials in Dushanbe told RFE/RL on July 13 that they hadn't received any official information about the arrests.

Tajik authorities estimate that some 300 Tajik nationals have joined IS militants in Syria and Iraq. Some of the militants have left along with their families.

Tajik officials say most of the militants have been radicalized in Russia, where more than 1.2 million Tajik migrant laborers are engaged mostly in seasonal jobs.

Link to original story on RFE/RL website

Copyright notice: Copyright (c) 2007-2009. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036

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