The Istanbul 14th High Penal Court has released Imad Machonouk, the last suspect who was under arrest in a trial of alleged Islamic State financiers, Hale Gonultas of local news portal Kisa Dalga has reported.

Gonultas is among the leading journalists working on the issue of Islamic State networks in Turkey.

Case got Turkey removed from FATF grey list

In October 2021, the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an anti-money laundering and terrorism financing watchdog set up by the G7 countries, placed Turkey on its grey list.

On June 27, 2024, the Istanbul 14th High Penal Court accepted the indictment targeting the claimed financiers of Islamic State in Turkey.

On June 28, 2024, FATF announced that it had removed Turkey from the grey list.

The justification for the removal from the list provided by FATF suggested that the focus was on the so-called “hawala system”, used by jihadist organisations for money transfers.

On July 1, 2024, bne IntelliNews noted: “Recently, Turkey has conducted some operations against exchange offices that provide 'hawala' services.”

“These operations do not mean that the hawala system has been entirely shut down,” this publication added.

All suspects now released since grey list status was dropped

The court case focused on 19 suspects accused of conducting Islamic State financial operations. They faced jail sentences of from 15 to 42 years.

In 2023, the suspects were arrested for terrorist organisation membership and the financing of terrorism.

In November 2024, the court released 18 of the suspects.

The suspects stood accused of transferring money from Islamic State’s claimed capital Raqqa in Syria to Turkey and from Turkey to militants in Syria.

Finance for prison break from Al-Hawl refugee camp

The suspects allegedly transferred a total of Turkish lira (TRY) 1bn to militants in Syria between 2017 and 2023 via six companies, namely Afak, Hwj, Al Avail, Ikra, Click and Al Barakat.

One billion lira is equal to around $26mn at the current exchange rate. The rate presently stands in the 39s. It was in the 3s in 2017.

The suspects are said to have used the Hawala system to skip the supervision of the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) of Turkey.

The court has in its possession records of the suspects’ communication conducted via WhatsApp groups entitled Alamiyah, Sanabil and Taiba.

The suspects appeared to have transferred some funds to militants in northern Syria via the Hawala system, or by directly carrying banknotes, with the aim of providing financing that would be used in breaking women and children out of Al-Hawl refugee camp, where Islamic State militants and their families are held.

Applied for the "golden passport"

Manchonouk, a citizen of Syria, deposited $0.5mn at a Turkish bank and applied to receive Turkish citizenship. He resides in Turkey under a temporary protection status.

In 2018, Turkey’s government launched the "golden passport" programme that grants citizenship in return for a real estate purchase worth a minimum of $0.4mn.

Since the Syria War began in 2011, Turkey has accepted millions of Syrians under temporary protection status. Based on official figures, there are around 3-4mn Syrians in Turkey. The actual figure is widely estimated to be around 5-7mn.

The total number of irregular immigrants in Turkey is estimated as standing at above 10mn, including 1-2mn Afghans and millions of people from African and other Asian countries.

Resident in Bahcesehir

Manchonouk, 47, has a permit for residency in Turkey. He resides in Bahcesehir district of Istanbul. He has bank accounts. He has launched companies that he has transferred to third parties.

He is accused of transferring funds to Syria via his companies. His company Piko Turizm is said to have received funds from Islamic State officials, whose financial assets were frozen by Turkey.

The company, registered as a goldsmithery, has conducted TRY 1bn worth of financial transactions since 2017. However, no record has been found of it running goldsmithery operations.

The company has exchanged funds with counterparts residing in Iraq, Spain, Algeria, Canada, Italy, Germany, Morocco, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, Cyprus, Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, Tunisia and Libya.

Information from FBI

The FBI informed Turkish authorities that an Islamic State militant named Abu Alaa aka Abd-al-Hamid Hadid had often visited Raqqa. The man had obtained funds from Piko Exchange. He had also transferred $0.6mn from Syria to Turkey between January and February 2023.

Neighbour of jailed Istanbul mayor

The court stated in its ruling on releasing Manchonouk: “It was taken into account that the defendant’s statement was received, his detention was long, the collection of evidence has been completed, the court has no suspicion of a tampering with evidence, the defendant has a permanent residence, detention is a precautionary measure, and the constitutional law orders respect for basic rights and freedoms. And, it was concluded that the provisions of judicial control would be sufficient for the defendant,”

Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu is currently in jail pending trial with the court registering a suspicion of potential escape and tampering of evidence. He also has a permanent residence close to Bahcesehir district.

Released pending trial, arrested on Afghanistan-Pakistan border

Last month, Turkey’s interior ministry announced that an Islamic State suspect, named Ozgur Altun aka Abu Yasir Al Turki, was repatriated by Turkey’s intelligence service MIT.

In 2017, Altun was arrested in Turkey. In 2018, he was released pending trial. Last month, he was arrested on the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.