After Transfer From Syria to Iraq, Turkey Begins Repatriating ISIS Detainees
Welat TV – Erbil
Turkish authorities have officially begun the process of repatriating citizens accused of belonging to the Islamic State (ISIS), who had been held for years in prisons in northeastern Syria before being transferred to Iraq in early 2026. The first group of Turkish nationals held at Karkh Central Prison near Baghdad International Airport has reportedly been brought to Ankara, although Turkish authorities have not disclosed the number or identities of those included in the initial group.
Security Coordination and List of 184 Suspects
According to a report published by Turkish news website T24 on Saturday, September 5, a list held by Iraqi security and judicial authorities includes 184 Turkish nationals accused of links to ISIS. The list reportedly contains several high-profile individuals wanted by Turkish authorities for alleged involvement in planning and carrying out attacks inside Turkey. Among them are individuals connected to some of the country’s most significant ISIS investigations and cases.
Ankara Train Station Bombing Case
One of the most prominent names on the list is “Savaş Yıldız," a fugitive defendant in the case concerning the October 10, 2015, bombing outside Ankara’s main train station, which killed 104 people and injured hundreds.
Yeldiz is reportedly listed as the 80th person on the Iraqi records. He is also accused of involvement in the bombing of offices belonging to the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in Adana and Mersin in May 2015. It remains unclear whether he was among the first group transferred from Iraq to Turkey. Turkish authorities have not yet announced a complete timetable for the repatriation of all Turkish nationals held in Iraq.
Iraqi Judiciary Completes Initial Investigations
The Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council announced on September 1 that it had completed the questioning and initial investigative procedures involving 5,704 detainees transferred from Syria, who come from 67 countries. The Council said the individual case files would subsequently be referred to the competent courts based on the evidence collected during the investigations.
Background: Transfer of ISIS Detainees from Syria to Iraq
The detainees’ presence in Iraq dates back to a large-scale security operation coordinated by the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) earlier this year. Between January 21 and February 12, CENTCOM transferred more than 5,700 adult male ISIS detainees from prisons operated by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northeastern Syria to Iraq.
The operation was carried out amid heightened security concerns and fears that the detention facilities could be compromised. Iraq later announced that Turkey had agreed to take back its nationals among the detainees, while Baghdad urged other countries to repatriate their citizens for prosecution in their home countries.
The start of Turkey’s repatriation process marks the first major step in implementing that arrangement and comes as Iraq moves to process the cases of thousands of foreign ISIS detainees transferred from Syria.