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Turkey says Brussels attacker deported in 2015, Belgium ignored warning - UPDATED

Turkey says Brussels attacker deported in 2015, Belgium ignored warning - <span style="color: red;">UPDATED

23 March 2016 19:47 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. One of the attackers in the Brussels suicide bombings was deported last year from Turkey, and Belgium subsequently ignored a warning that the man was a militant, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, APA reports quoting Reuters.

Erdogan's office later identified the man as Ibrahim El Bakraoui, one of the two brothers named by Belgium as responsible for the attacks that killed at least 31 people in Brussels on Tuesday and were claimed by the Islamic State group.

Speaking at a news conference, Erdogan said Bakraoui was detained in the southern Turkish province of Gaziantep near the Syrian border and was later deported to the Netherlands. Turkey also notified Dutch authorities, Erdogan said.

"One of the attackers in Brussels is an individual we detained in Gaziantep in June 2015 and deported. We reported the deportation to the Belgian Embassy in Ankara on July 14, 2015, but he was later set free," Erdogan said.

"Belgium ignored our warning that this person is a foreign fighter."

Erdogan's office confirmed that Bakraoui was deported to the Netherlands. It said he was later released by Belgian authorities as "no links with terrorism" were found. It was not clear when Bakraoui was handed over to Belgian authorities.

Erdogan initially said Bakraoui was deported in June but his office later said he was detained in June and deported in July.

Belgian newspaper Le Soir quoted Justice Minister Koen Geens as confirming Bakraoui was deported to the Netherlands. Geens' spokesman could not be immediately reached for comment.

The attacks in Brussels came just days after a suspected Islamic State suicide bomber blew himself up in Istanbul's most popular shopping district, killing three Israelis and an Iranian and wounding dozens more people.

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21:20

Baku-APA. Turkey deported one of the attackers involved in Tuesday’s Brussels explosions in June 2015, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said, APA reports quoting Anadolu Agency.

Addressing a joint press conference with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis in the Turkish capital Ankara Wednesday, Erdogan said Belgium was warned that the attacker captured in Turkey's southeastern Gaziantep province in 2015 was a foreign militant.

"However, despite our warnings that this person is a foreign terrorist fighter, Belgium failed to detect the terrorist links of this person," the Turkish president said.

At least 31 people were killed and more than 100 others were injured in multiple explosions at Zaventem airport and a metro station in Brussels Tuesday morning.

Belgian media identified two suspected suicide bombers at the airport blast as brothers Khalid and Ibrahim el-Bakroui.

According to Broadcaster RTBF, the brothers were known to police for organized crime, but not acts of terrorism.

A news agency linked to Daesh claimed responsibility for the Brussels attack.