Foreign Ministry announces: 3 Turks killed in Israeli airstrike

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced that three Turkish citizens, with whom contact had been lost while they were attempting to cross from Lebanon into Israel via illegal routes, have lost their lives as a result of an airstrike conducted by Israel in that region. In the statement made by the Ministry, it was stated, "We condemn in the strongest terms this unlawful attack that caused the death of our citizens."

A written statement was issued by the Ministry regarding the matter.

The statement noted that three Turkish citizens, with whom contact had been lost while they were attempting to cross from Lebanon into Israel via illegal routes, lost their lives as a result of an airstrike conducted by Israel in that region.

The statement, which expressed condolences to the families of the deceased citizens and prayed for God's mercy upon them, noted that the necessary procedures are being carried out to transport the remains of the citizens to Turkey as soon as possible.

"ISRAEL MUST END ITS AGGRESSIVE POLICIES IMMEDIATELY"

The statement included the following: "We condemn in the strongest terms this unlawful attack that caused the death of our citizens. As we have emphasized on every occasion, Israel must immediately end its aggressive policies that disregard human life and increase tension in our region."

FAMILIES NOTIFIED OFFICIAL AUTHORITIES

The families of our citizens named Sezer Özdemir, Hüseyin Kaya, and Çınar Alp Baydenk notified official authorities that the aforementioned individuals had gone missing on the Lebanon border on January 11, 2025, and that no news could be received from them.

It was learned that the three Turkish citizens had previously traveled to Israel illegally using fake names and were deported after working in the country for two to three years. It is known that this time, the aforementioned individuals were attempting to cross from Lebanon into Israel illegally to work.

AS A RESULT OF THE AIRSTRIKE

The last contact with the three Turkish citizens took place in the Shebaa Farms area of Mount Dov on the Lebanese side of the border. Reports in the Israeli press stated that three unidentified individuals attempting to cross the border that same evening were neutralized as a result of an airstrike by the Israel Defense Forces.

Based on the possibility that the individuals in question could be our citizens, the Embassies in Beirut and Tel Aviv contacted local authorities.

According to information received from local authorities, on January 11, a group of approximately 20 people, consisting of citizens of various countries, attempted to cross from Lebanon into Israel via illegal routes.

It was learned that this group wanted to cross into Israel by reaching an agreement with an international organized crime network in exchange for a certain fee. The human smugglers directed the citizens to a certain point by sending live locations.

RELATIVES FILED A CRIMINAL COMPLAINT

The three Turkish citizens lost their lives on the evening of January 11 as a result of an unmanned aerial vehicle operation conducted by Israel on the Lebanon border.

It is understood that the three Turkish citizens, who were among the twenty people, were forced by the group's leader to enter the area where Israel was conducting operations. From the statements of the other individuals, it was learned that if our three citizens had been able to cross the border via this route, the remaining 17 people would have been directed to the same route. In this respect, it appears that the three Turkish citizens were directed to the operation zone for a kind of "trial" purpose.

The relatives of the families have filed a criminal complaint against the human smugglers.