Turkish authorities nab 20 ISIL suspects

ANKARA

Turkish security authorities have apprehended 20 individuals over allegedly having ties with the ISIL terrorist organization in simultaneous operations in seven provinces across the country, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya has announced.

Among the targeted suspects in the operations were those active in the western province of İzmir and the Central Anatolian province of Eskişehir, with 11 others captured in Istanbul, Yerlikaya said in a post on social media platform X on April 17.

"Our nation's peace, unity and solidarity will continue resolutely to be safeguarded with your prayers and support until the last terrorist is neutralized," the minister stated.

Sharing details on the operations, security sources said that the Turkish army earlier seized a list of names believed to belong to members of the terrorist organization during a raid on one of its headquarters in Syria.

The Istanbul police initiated an investigation into whether the listed individuals were present in the city. Through their efforts, teams identified 11 foreign nationals residing in eight different districts of Istanbul. One suspect identified themselves as a journalist and others involved in various sectors as merchants. After completing their investigations, the teams conducted simultaneous raids on the identified addresses, resulting in the apprehension of 11 suspects.

Türkiye faced a series of ISIL-linked attacks in recent years, including an attack on a Catholic church in Istanbul in January.

A recently accepted indictment has also revealed a series of terror activities by ISIL-Khorasan in Istanbul, ranging from plans to attack parliament and military barracks in the city to establishing member recruitment networks.