Turkey Arrests 2 Czechs who 'Fought for Syria Kurdish Militia'

Turkey has arrested two Czech nationals on suspicion of fighting for the Syrian Kurdish Peoples' Protection Units (YPG), seen as a terror group by Ankara but an ally by Washington, reports said Thursday.

Turkish security forces detained the man and woman -- Miroslav Farkas and Marketa Vselichova -- in the southeastern Sirnak province that borders Syria and Iraq, the pro-government Sabah daily said.

It said they adopted the names Serxwebun Botan and Zelane Botan to fight with the YPG and also printed the identity pages of their Czech passports.

The two were detained while illegally trying to cross back into Turkey and have now been remanded in custody, the report said.

It said this was the first such operation aimed at detaining foreigners suspected of operating with the YPG. 

Several Western nationals are believed to have been killed while fighting with the group in recent months.

Czech media said the foreign ministry had confirmed the arrests, without giving further details.

The YPG is seen by Turkey as the Syrian arm of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has waged an over three decade insurgency against the Turkish state.

But the United States works closely with the group as the best ground force in Syria to defeat Islamic State (IS) jihadists. Turkey's NATO allies do not regard the YPG as a terror organization.

The Sabah report said the two Czechs had been trained by German special forces and the French foreign legion.

The arrests come as tension is rising between Turkey and the European Union over the scale of the crackdown in the wake of the July 15 failed coup.

Ankara has meanwhile accused EU states -- in particular Belgium and Germany -- of giving sanctuary to wanted PKK militants and turning a deaf ear to demands for their extradition.