Turkey captures Islamic State mastermind behind attacks in Russia, Germany
- Ankara’s interior minister revealed Yusuf Huba allegedly planned and ordered an attack at a supermarket in Hamburg
- He said the suspect is being held and questioned in Syria
Turkey has been highlighting what it says is its fight against Isis, in the face of accusations that the Turkish military offensive last month to drive Syrian Kurdish fighters from northeast Syria would allow for a resurgence of the militant group.
The interior minister said the suspect is also known as Abu Jihad al-Din al-Nasır Ubeyde and is being held and questioned in Syria, in an area controlled by Turkey.
Turkey begins deporting foreign jihadists to US, Europe
“We have captured a very senior Isis member who is known as a bomber, bomb-maker and mastermind of suicide bomb attacks,” he told Hurriyet.
Since its military incursion into Syria, Turkey has also been deporting foreign Isis members who are held in Turkish prisons or in Syria to their home countries. Isis suspects from the US, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands have been repatriated in the past two weeks. Turkey also plans to soon deport an Irish woman and her child as well as 11 French nationals.