Turkey deports 120 Syrian refugees, Tunisian tourist to north Syria
IDLIB, Syria (North Press) – Turkish authorities deported on Saturday 120 Syrian refugees along with a man of Tunisian nationality to the city of Azaz, northern Syria.
An official in the Bab al-Salama border crossing with Turkey near Azaz, told North Press, ” Issa al-Walhazi, a 27-year-old Tunisian man who travelled to Turkey as a tourist, was among the refugees who were deported.”
According to the official, al-Walhazi was deported, along with 120 Syrian refugees, to northern Syria on suspicion of being a Syrian bearing a forged passport.
This is the seventh time in which Turkey deports non-Syrian nationals to Syria after arresting them on charges of forging official identification papers and passports.
The security forces in Azaz affiliated with the Turkish-backed armed opposition factions, aka the Syrian National Army (SNA), moved the Tunisian to a shelter in the city until they communicate with the relevant authorities to confirm his nationality.
Frequent deportations carried out by Turkey have targeted not only Syrians but also non-Syrian nationals, including Moroccans, Algerians, Afghans, Iraqis, Egyptians, and others who were accused of forging their official identification papers.
During October, Turkey deported 1,200 refugees to Syria through the Bab al-Salama border and the Tel Abyad crossing in the northern countryside of Raqqa.