Turkey captured and deported Uzbeks suspected of killing a rabbi in UAE

Turkey revealed on Tuesday that it had captured and deported three Uzbek nationals suspected of killing rabbi Tzvi Kogan, an Israeli-Moldovan citizen, in the United Arab Emirates over the weekend.

The Turkish security sources, speaking to Middle East Eye on the condition of anonymity, said the operation had been initiated at the request of the UAE government.

Rabbi Kogan, who had been managing a kosher market in Dubai since 2020, was killed on Saturday in what UAE authorities described as a pre-meditated attack. Following the incident, investigations revealed that the suspects - identified as Alimbay Tahirovic, 28; Mahmudcan Abdurrahim, 28; and Azizbek Kamilovic, 33 - had fled the UAE after the alleged killing.

Their movements were traced to Turkey, prompting Emirati officials to request assistance from Ankara.

The Turkish National Intelligence Agency apprehended the individuals after tracking their flight to Istanbul in coordination with the Turkish police. The operation was kept under the radar to avoid suspicion among the individuals.

According to the same sources, security forces detained the suspects in a taxi during a routine traffic check and confirmed their identities.

Following their arrests, the suspects were swiftly extradited to the UAE to face charges for the killing of Kogan, the sources said.

“The Republic of Turkey will continue its sensitive work to ensure that no criminals are housed within its borders as part of the fight against terrorism,” one of the security sources added.

Emirati authorities said on Sunday that three individuals had been arrested in connection with Kogan’s death, and they had begun a legal process to charge the individuals.

The UAE's foreign ministry thanked Turkey in a statement on Tuesday for its cooperation on the matter.

Israeli officials, speaking to the media, initially blamed Turkey for the killing because the suspects had fled there. However, they later changed their statements, saying that they suspected the Uzbek nationals were guns for hire by unknown parties and, therefore, were not able to declare their connection or motive for the killing.

Turkish-Israeli relations have been on a downward spiral since the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attack on southern Israel. The subsequent war on Gaza, which has been described as a genocide, pushed Ankara to impose a trade embargo against Tel Aviv in May and join an International Court of Justice case against Israel for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.