60 Daesh suspects detained in Turkish capital

Anti-terrorism police in the capital Ankara have detained 60 Daesh-linked suspects early Sunday morning, security sources said.

The suspects, most of them foreign nationals, have been charged with being members of an armed terrorist organisation, according to the sources who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media.

Police also carried out separate operations in Istanbul, north-western Kocaeli and western Izmir provinces in early hours of Sunday, police sources said.

In Istanbul and Kocaeli, a total of 18 people – 14 of whom are foreigners – were arrested for having alleged links to the Daesh terrorist group.

The operations were conducted in 20 different addresses in Beyoglu, Esenler, Sisli, Bagcilar, Maltepe and Sultanbeyli districts of Istanbul and one address in Kocaeli.

Security forces also held at least eight Daesh suspects in Izmir in preparation for a terrorist attack.

During the operation, officers seized some organisational documents, a hunting rifle, an unauthorized gun and a number of books written by Fetullah Gulen, the leader of what the Turkish authorities refer to as the “Fetullah Terrorist Organisation”.

The US based cleric, Fetullah Gulen, and his supporters have been blamed for July 15 coup attempt, which killed at least 248 people and wounded around 2,200 others.

Turkey has taken steps to crack down on Daesh since 2014 when the terror group launched a series of suicide bombings in Turkey.

Separately, Turkey has also been conducting Operation Euphrates Shield, which began late August 2016 to improve security and eliminate the terror threat from Daesh as well as other terrorist groups along Turkey’s southern border with Syria.