Turkey has stopped more than 36,500 terror suspects heading for Syria, Interior Minister Efkan Ala said Thursday.
Most suspects were stopped from entering Turkey at the border while nearly 2,800 were arrested and later deported, Ala told Anadolu Agency’s Editors’ Desk meeting in Ankara.
“Turkey has denied entry to 33,746 people from 123 countries suspected of joining terror activities in Syria,” he said.
Ala added: “Turkey has detained and deported 2,783 suspects from 89 countries.”
The minister did not indicate a time scale for the interventions.
Turkey, which shares a 900 kilometer (560 mile) border with Syria, has been a transit point for foreigners trying to join groups such as Daesh. The Turkish authorities have stepped up efforts to stem the flow, improving security checks at ports, airports and crossings and reinforcing security on the Syrian border.
Ala said Turkey exchanged intelligence with the suspects’ governments.