Russian police interrogate the Moscow university student who tried to join ISIL
Varvara Karaulova, the Moscow university student who went missing and later turned up at the Turkish-Syrian border, trying to cross into the Islamic State, has been deported back to Russia by Turkish authorities. Russian police have already interrogated Karaulova as a witness in an investigation into ISIL recruitment in Russia, according to the family's lawyer.
There are no official reports about the existence of such a case, however, and it's possible that the interrogation was conducted as part of an effort to obtain more information on ISIL.
According to the family's lawyer, investigators spoke to Karaulova on the evening of June 11, before sending her home to her parents. More questioning is apparently planned for next week. Varvara Karaulova’s father, Pavel Karaulov, confirmed to the news agency RIA Novosti that his daughter testified before the authorities and returned home.
RIA Novosti reported that Karaulova could be included in Russia’s state witness protection program, in the event that a criminal case is launched against ISIL recruitment.
“She’s at home, spending time with her family. They probably have a lot to talk about. She is doing fine and her mood is fine too,” the family's lawyer said.
- Karaulova, a second year college student at Moscow State University, left home for class on May 27 and didn't return. Her parents told reporters they later learned she had boarded a plane from Moscow to Turkey. By tracking her phone, they later established that she was near the Syrian border. On June 4, the Russian Ministry of Defense said the Turkish police had confirmed Karaulova's entry into Turkey.
- Pavel Karaulov and his lawyer, Alexander Karabanov, believe Karaulova was recruited by professionally trained ISIL agents. Karabanov maintains that the recruiters operated “smoothly and efficiently," and that Karaulova is not the only one to fall victim to their activities.
- For more on how Varvara Karaulova disappeared, read *‘She was a straight-A student’: Missing Moscow girl recruited by ISIL, says her father*