Iran’s foreign ministry said that after efforts by the Turkish and Syrian embassies in Iran, the nine Iranians previously arrested by Turkish forces at the border will be returned on Saturday.
“Nine Iranians who traveled to Turkey with the aim of emigration and encountered problems during their travel through the Razi border port, within the framework of cooperation between the Iranian and Turkish governments, are scheduled to enter the country today,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said in a press statement on Saturday.
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He added that the Foreign Ministry, Iran’s ambassadors to Turkey and Syria, and the Turkish and Syrian embassies in Iran have cooperated to help return these people to their families.
According to Russia Today, Turkish forces arrested the nine Iranians after identifying them as Syrian Kurds and handing them over to Ankara’s factions in Syria on charges of belonging to a “terrorist group.”
On December 19th, the Voice of America radio said, “Ankara’s Free Syrian Army wants to use nine Iranian refugees to conclude a prisoner exchange deal with the Syrian government.” Relatives of asylum seekers staged a sit-in in front of the Turkish embassy over the past four and a half months because they did not know the fate of their children, and Turkish officials have not yet commented on the matter.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
