Turkish national Ebru Ozkan arrested on terror charges
Turkish national Ebru Ozkan arrested on terror chargesREUTERS

Israel deported a 27-year-old Turkish woman suspected of working with the Hamas terror organization, returning her home to Turkey Sunday night.

Earlier this month, 27-year-old Ebru Ozkan was indicted in an IDF court in Samaria for working on behalf of a hostile organization, and transferring money to foreign agents.

Ozkan had been arrested by Israeli authorities at Ben Gurion International Airport in June as she prepared to board a flight home to Turkey, following a visit to Israel.

During her time in Israel, prosecutors say, Ozkan worked on behalf of the Hamas terror group and carried money for terrorists linked with the Gaza-based terror organization. In the indictment prosecutors claimed Ozkan had worked with Hamas terrorists who instructed her to smuggle items on her upcoming flight home to Turkey.

On Wednesday, the court ordered that Ozkan be released from Hasharon Prison.

Late Sunday night, Ozkan was expelled from Israel, returning home on a Turkish Airlines flight to Istanbul. According to Turkish media outlets, Ozkan reached Turkey just after 12:10 a.m. Monday morning.

Turkish officials had previously threatened to “retaliate” against Israel over Ozkan’s arrest, and demanded her immediate release.

“We will retaliate against this,” said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. The minister claimed that Israel was “taking deterrent measures against” Turkish citizens “travelling to Jerusalem”.