29 ISIL members caught in joint op by intel, police
ISTANBUL
In a joint operation conducted by the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) and the police, 29 suspects, who were preparing to attack synagogues and churches, as well as the Iraqi Embassy in Türkiye, have been captured.
"29 people were caught in the ‘Heroes-37’ Operation centered in Istanbul and carried out in nine other provinces against the ISIL terrorist organization. Our fight against terrorist organizations and their collaborators will continue with determination,” Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on X on Dec. 29.
In the "Heros-37" Operations organized simultaneously across 39 addresses in Ankara, Balıkesir, Bolu, Düzce, Kırşehir, Konya, Sakarya, Samsun and Istanbul; upon identifying the members of the "Salman-i Farisi Battalion" organization linked to ISIL that is attempting to be created in Türkiye, and understanding that they are conducting reconnaissance activities against Jewish and Christian places of worship in Istanbul; 29 people were arrested.
“I congratulate our MİT members and police officers who organized the operations. For the peace, unity and solidarity of our nation, we will not tolerate any terrorists. We will continue our struggle uninterruptedly with the outstanding efforts of our security forces,” Yerlikaya said.
The MİT detected that Mijbel al-Shuveyhi, codenamed "Abu Yakin al-Iraqi," and Mohammed Hilaf Ibrahim Ibrahim, codenamed "Abu Laith," the so-called intelligence officers of the Salman-i Farisi Battalion were preparing attacks against synagogues and churches in Türkiye, while Iyheb Elani, codenamed "Abdullah al-Jumayli," was preparing attacks against the Iraqi Embassy.
Al-Shuveyhi, Ibrahim and Elani, as well as 29 individuals linked to the Salman al-Farisi Battalion, were captured in a dawn operation organized in nine different provinces. Many digital materials belonging to the organization were seized in the operation.
In their testimonies, al-Shuveyhi, Ibrahim and Elani gave detailed information about the process of their recruitment to ISIL, their activities within the terror organization in Syria and Türkiye, as well as information on the individuals carrying out activities on behalf of ISIL in Türkiye.
As a result of the operation, the activities of the Salman al-Farisi Battalion, which was operating on behalf of ISIL in the country, were disrupted.
Türkiye has been attacked by ISIL terrorists multiple times, with at least 10 suicide bombings, seven bomb attacks and four armed attacks, killing over 300 people and injuring hundreds more. In 2013, Türkiye became one of the first countries to declare ISIL a terrorist group.