BERLIN
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Monday that Turkey opens its borders for humanitarian reasons only, to let in Syrian refugees, not terrorists.
His remarks came at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin, one day after an estimated two million people and scores of world leaders rallied in the French capital to protest against the recent deadly attacks in Paris.
French media reported that Hayat Boumeddiene, dubbed “France’s most wanted woman”, is the partner of Amedy Coulibaly, the gunman who killed four hostages at a kosher supermarket in Paris on Friday. Media reports also said that Boumeddiene is now in Syria and went there before the attack.
"Although we did not receive any pre-warnings, Turkish intelligence detected her and immediately informed French authorities," Davutoglu said. "Turkish and French intelligence services are now coordinating."
Earlier on Monday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Boumeddiene arrived in Turkey from Madrid on Jan. 2, stayed at a hotel in Istanbul and went to Syria on Jan. 8.
"There was no specific entry ban for Hayat Boumeddiene as French officials did not notify us about her," Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala told reporters in Ankara on Monday.
"We cannot know where she was before Madrid," Davutoglu added. "Now, can you blame Spain for this? Is it possible to blame Turkey? Is Turkey to blame for having a border with Syria?"
The Turkish premier noted that he cannot accept any unfair accusations against Turkey since Turkish officials have always taken the most solid stance against terrorist activities and are involved in anti-terror efforts in many parts of the world.
Davutoglu also said that his country is already working hard to protect its 911-km border with Syria and block the entry of suspects and foreign fighters, but has to keep the crossings open for innocent children and women fleeing the relentless civil war and atrocities in Syria.
"If they ever blame Turkey, we will close the borders tomorrow, but the sin of the killing of every single child by the Syrian regime's bombardment will be upon those who wanted us to do so," he said. "The international community has to resolve this."
Davutoglu also said that Turkey does not want terror acts along its borders as the country is the most affected by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant's terror.
"Regarding foreign fighters, we have called upon European and world nations so many times to implement intelligence cooperation," he said. "Turkey receives around 35 million tourists. We cannot tell whether someone is a terrorist or not and categorize them only by looking at their names."
The Turkish PM also said that Turkey needs to receive intelligence from other countries that "these people are suspects" in order to take necessary measures.
"We have a given list of 7,000 names, including some German citizens, and we have banned their entry," Davutoglu said. "We have also deported another 1,500 to 2,000 people, including German and French citizens, upon their entry. We will always take the necessary actions based on intelligence."
Twelve people were killed last Wednesday when masked gunmen attacked the Paris headquarters of “Charlie Hebdo,” a satirical magazine known for printing offensive material, including derogatory cartoons of Prophet Muhammad in 2006 and 2012.
Said and Cherif Kouachi, the two suspected gunmen and brothers, were killed by police on Friday in a warehouse in Dammartin-en-Goele, a small town north of Paris.
