Ankara, Oct. 1 (SANA) Turkish intelligence has arrested Omar al-Khatib, a Syrian suspect accused of helping plan the 2013 Reyhanli bombings that killed 53 people, as he attempted to flee to Europe by sea, Anadolu Agency reported Thursday, citing security sources.
Al-Khatib, who was wanted under an Interpol Red Notice, was brought to Türkiye after his capture, TRT World reported, citing security sources.
The sources accused him of coordinating contacts between the perpetrators and intelligence officials of Syria’s deposed regime.
Two car bombs exploded outside the municipal building and a post office in Reyhanli, a Turkish town near the Syrian border, on May 11, 2013. The explosions also damaged 912 homes, 891 businesses and 148 vehicles, according to Anadolu.
Al-Khatib arranged meetings in 2013 between Yusuf Nazik, another suspected planner, and Kifah Moulhem, then a major general in the Syrian deposed regime’s forces, during which details of the attack were decided, security sources cited by TRT World said.
Al-Khatib and Nazik entered Türkiye through Hatay province in February that year to identify targets, then obtained approval from Moulhem, who was based in Latakia, the sources said.
In May, before the attack, al-Khatib accompanied Tamer Dokanji to a military intelligence branch in Latakia to collect materials for an explosive device, according to the sources. Dokanji and Nazik subsequently transported a car bomb to Reyhanli, where it was detonated remotely, they added.
After the attack, Nazik and Dokanji fled to Syria, where al-Khatib took them to the same intelligence branch, the sources said. They alleged that the deposed regime paid al-Khatib and others involved in the attack.
Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) monitored al-Khatib’s movements and activities in Syria before capturing him, the sources said.
Turkish authorities previously arrested other suspects in connection with the attack, including Nazik in 2018, Cengiz Sertel in 2024, and Mohammad Dib Korali and Dokanji in 2025.
Anadolu said Moulhem, accused of issuing instructions for the attack, was appointed head of Syria’s National Security Bureau in February 2024. He left Syria following the fall of the deposed regime in December that year.
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