Syrians held in Turkish prison 'in breach of international law,' advocates say

Scores of Syrians detained after Turkey's Operation Peace Spring began in October have been accused of links to the Kurdistan Workers Party and moved to a prison in Sanliurfa, Turkey.
ANKARA, TURKEY - APRIL 22: A view of Sincan Penal Institutions Campus on April 22, 2020 in Ankara, Turkey. Guardians and institution employees wearing masks and gloves and following the social distance rules, are working for 15 days at the prison. After being subjected to the isolation process, officers are working before going to their homes without seeing their families for about a month. As well as throughout the country, also in capital Ankara, guardians and institution employees stay in places of publi
A view of Sincan Penal Institutions Campus on April 22, 2020 in Ankara, Turkey. - Ozge Elif Kizil/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
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Amberin Zaman
@amberinzaman

At least 70 Syrian nationals are being held in Turkish prisons and are facing prosecution on terrorism charges after being captured inside Syria after Turkey launched its Oct. 9 invasion of northeastern Syria.

Legal experts and Syrian activists say the Syrians are being held in breach of international law and have been subjected to torture and other ill treatment. Hidayet Enmek, a lawyer acting on behalf of five of the detainees, told Al-Monitor his clients had been tortured during their interrogation. Most are believed to be held in the Hilvan maximum security prison in Sanliurfa province.

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