by STAFF WRITER
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Jan 18, CMC – Turkish security forces captured 961 foreigners fighting with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Lesant (ISIL) last year, according to the Turkish newspaper Hurriet Daily News.
The paper, quoting a report released by the authorities last month, said four of the fighters were from Trinidad and Tobago.
According to the list, 324 Chinese citizens were caught in Turkey fighting for ISIL while 99 foreign fighters with Russian passports were caught. Palestinians fighters made up the third country in the list with 83 while there were 63 fighters from Turkmenistan, 57 from Afghanistan, and 44 from Indonesia.
There were also a number of fighters from western European countries, including 19 from Germany and the United Kingdom each and 18 from France.
Some of the fighters crossing into Turkey from the Syrian side of the border claimed to be fleeing oppression from ISIL however others admitted to plans to conduct attacks within Turkey.
Last week, a top United States general expressed deep concern that a small number of motivated Islamic State fighters could commit acts of terror in Caribbean nations.
General John Kelly, commander of the Miami-based US Southern Command, or SouthCOM, said that about 150 Islamic extremists left the Caribbean region to join Islamic State fighters in the Middle East last year, about 50 more than in the previous year.
However, he said, the biggest threat might not be the extremists who leave to train and fight with the Islamic State, but the ones who stay behind.
Kelly, who oversees US security in Latin America the Caribbean, said Islamic extremist groups seem to have a new message for would-be jihadists.
“And that [message] is, ‘Rather than coming here to Syria, why don’t you just stay at home and do San Bernardino or do Boston or do Fort Hood?’” he said, alluding to attacks in the US perpetrated by Muslims sympathetic to extremist groups.
Caribbean security experts have warned that extremists could exploit the region’s relatively open borders with the US and Canada.
