Syrian mother detained for attempting to sell baby in Istanbul

ISTANBUL – Doğan News Agency

A Syrian woman was detained by Istanbul police when she allegedly attempted to sell her three-month-old baby on May 11.

The police detained two Syrian women and one woman from Turkmenistan in Istanbul’s Kağıthane district while they were attempting to sell a three-month-old baby.

The plainclothes police officers met with the three women, including the mother of the baby, pretending they wanted to take the baby in exchange for money after they received a notice that the women were trying to sell the baby.

The mother, identified as S.Ş., the other Syrian woman, identified as A.C. and the woman with Turkmen nationality, identified as G.R., were detained in the scene.  The baby was sent to the nursing house owned by the state.

Syria’s three-year-long war has killed more than 150,000 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, while half of the population is estimated to have fled their homes.       

Of those who have fled Syria, nearly 600,000 have registered as refugees in Jordan and approximately 670,000 in Turkey.