A U.S. citizen has been detained for trying to enter Turkey illegally from Syria, the governor of the southern province of Hatay said on August 7.
Hatay Governor Ercan Topaca said journalist Snell Lindsteyler was detained in Hatay’s Altınozu district near the Syrian border.
“A U.S. journalist was captured while she was trying to cross the border illegally; she was taken to court and remanded. The trial phase is ongoing. For now, we do not know if she is a spy or not,” Topaca said.
He said U.S. helicopters were seen flying over the border to pick up the journalist before she was detained by Turkish officials.
Lindsteyler has a residence permit in Turkey, Topaca said, adding that she was taken into custody on the grounds that she crossed Syria illegally from Turkey and then tried to re-enter Turkey illegally.