VAN - It was revealed that 9 Kurds who came to Turkey legally from Kermanshah city of Iran were detained and handed over to Free Syrian Army (ÖSO). Families who could not heard from their sons, called for urgent help.

 

It has been revealed that 9 Kurds who came to Turkey legally from Pave city in Iran's Kermanshah province were taken to Syria, not their country, after being detained and handed over to the Free Syrian Army (FSA). According to the information received; Mobin Veledbeygi, Mesud Hayderî, Demavend Pak Sereşt, Afşar Rustemi, Bahmen Şadravan, Hidayet Ruxzadî, Said Ahmedî, Fardin Dervişpur and an unknown person who entered Turkey legally 3 months ago wanted to seek asylum in European countries. However, as the asylum attempts continued, 9 Kurds were detained in Beykoz, Istanbul on 22 August. The detainees were taken to the police station and kept there for two days. After their statements were taken, a deportation decision was made. According to the information received; nine people who were taken to Antep were handed over to the FSA. While we have not been able to obtain any information about the Kurds in question, who are thought to have been taken to Azez, the attempts of the families have not yielded any results. Recently, it was determined that some people contacted the families and demanded a ransom for the release of 9 people.

 

THEY CAME TO TURKEY WITH VALID PASSPORTS

 

Siyavoş Pak Sereşt, brother of Demavend Pak Sereşt, who was handed over to the FSA, said that for a month they could not reach any information about whether his brother and his companions were being held in a refugee camp or in prison. Explaining that all families are worried about the safety of their children, Sereşt said, “My brother entered Turkey with a valid passport. When they enter Turkey with a passport, they can reside for 3 months. My brother and his other friends wanted to go to Europe from Istanbul to seek asylum. But they were detained by the police. The day they were taken into custody, they sent us their location via Whatsapp. So we have information on where they were taken. We were able to meet with them as their families when they were detained. They said, 'They will deport us'. We thought that there would be no problems and that they would come back home, but it did not happen."

 

WHY WERE THEY HANDED OVER TO FSA

 

Explaining that families were called from a different number after the procedures were completed at the police station, Sereşt said, “I talked to my brother from that different number. He said, 'They took us to a city called Antep'. He said that there were 54 Iraqi citizens with them. After that day, our communication with them was completely cut off. According to the information we received, all of these people were taken to Azaz. Because 54 Iraqis were handed over to Iraqi authorities in Azaz and sent back to their countries. They sent the Iraqis to their countries after 14 days, but they did not take any action against the 9 Kurds. Turkey is detaining these people, but taking them to Syria instead of their country and handing them over to the FSA. We couldn't understand why they did this."

 

'THEY DEMANDED RANSOM'

 

Stating that they applied to the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the families, Sereşt said, "They told us they would look into the situation, but there has been no development so far. We even contacted many groups and individuals, but we still could not get a result. We think that this happened because they are Kurds. Our only concern now is their safety. We don't even know if they're alive or not. Not long ago, some people from Syria contacted us and asked us for money for the release of 9 people. But we did not accept such a thing because we did not trust them. We guess that gangs are demanding ransom. We think that someone definitely gains from this situation."

 

URGENT CALL FOR HELP

 

Sereşt stated that while these people were in custody in Istanbul, some lawyers called them and said that they would release their relatives if they gave them money. Sereşt said: "We are waiting for their call, not knowing what to do now. As families, we ask for help from Kurdish members of parliament in Turkey. We are asking for urgent help from bar associations, non-governmental organizations and international organizations. Send these people back to their families. All of them have children and families. My brother's child is only 1.5 months old. We are very concerned about the lives of these people. We hope our call will be heard and supported."

 

 

MA / Adnan Bilen