Over 60 suspected ISIL members detained in Turkey

ISTANBUL

At least 65 people have been detained in counterterrorism operations across Turkey for their suspected links to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a police source said on Dec. 21.

Anti-terror squads conducted simultaneous operations at 12 locations in seven districts of Istanbul, apprehending 45 foreigners who were allegedly planning to carry out an attack, the source said.

During the raid, police also seized a number of documents and digital tools.

Separately, police rounded up 10 ISIL suspects in the Aegean province of İzmir during simultaneous operations in the city.

The detentions came after the İzmir Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issued arrest warrants for 11 suspects.

Security forces detained two Syrian nationals in the northwestern province of Bursa and three Syrian and two Iraqi nationals in the southern province of Kahramanmaraş over suspected links to ISIL, said police sources.

In the southern province of Adana, police detained two Syrian nationals suspected of having routinely transferred $10,000 to 20,000 to ISIL in Syria using the smartphone communications application WhatsApp, state-run Anadolu Agency reported.

The counterterrorism forces acted upon a tipoff that carriers in Adana were sending money to terror groups in Syria, and took certain individuals under physical and technical surveillance for the process.

Police seized around $15,000 as well as contraband cellphones and certain digital files during the operation in a shop run by the Syrian nationals.

The duo was then arrested on charges of acting as financial carriers for terror groups abroad. Legal procedures against them are ongoing, the agency said.

Officials also reported to the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MİT) that a U.S. national had asked the duo their whereabouts and that the American national presumably lives in the Turkish capital Ankara.

Ten suspects in the case are being sought and there is no arrest warrant issued for the American national, the agency reported.

In another operation, police in the Black Sea province of Sakarya arrested seven of 11 suspects who were detained, suspected of being members of various terror groups including ISIL.

In a citywide operation, three individuals suspected to be linked to ISIL were detained. While two of the three were then released on judicial control, the other suspect remains in custody.