One of the leaders of the international terrorist organization, the Al-Nusra Front, on an international wanted list, has been detained in Kiev, says the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU).
The man is a citizen of one of the former Soviet republics and took part in the Syrian conflict throughout 2013-2014. Shevchenko court in Ukraine's capital has issued an arrest warrant for the suspect, believed to be one of Al-Nusra’s leading lights.
According to the SBU, the suspect will be extradited, but it’s not clear to which country. The identity of the detainee hasn’t been revealed to the media.
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On November 11, Ukrainian border guards reported they had detained a Russian citizen suspected of belonging to Islamic State in Kiev’s Borispol International Airport. The man on the international wanted list landed in Kiev on a flight from Istanbul. He was handed over to police and the arrest was reported to Ukraine’s Interpol office.
The Al-Nusra Front, also known as Jabhat al-Nusra, is the Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda. The Sunni Islamic jihadist group is fighting against Syrian government troops alongside Islamic State. Their declared aim is to establish a caliphate in Syria and neighboring Iraq.