At least 33 Daesh/ISIS suspects caught in Turkey

ISTANBUL

Turkish security forces rounded up 33 foreign nationals across the country for alleged links to the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group, security sources said on Thursday.

Anti-terror police teams in the metropolis of Istanbul launched an operation to nab 11 suspects, thought to be members of groups planning attacks on behalf of Daesh/ISIS, said the sources, who requested anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

As part of the investigation, police teams carried out simultaneous operations at 11 locations in four different Istanbul districts.

Separately, anti-terror police in the capital Ankara launched an operation to catch 30 other foreign nationals with alleged Daesh/ISIS links, said a security source.

A total of 22 suspects were held as part of the simultaneous operations, said the source on condition of anonymity. Efforts were underway to nab the remaining suspects, it added.

A large number of digital materials and organizational documents were also seized during the raids.

Turkey was one of the first countries to declare Daesh/ISIS a terror group.

The country has since been attacked by Daesh/ISIS terrorists multiple times. The group has carried out at least 10 suicide bombings, seven bomb attacks, and four armed attacks, killing 315 people and injuring hundreds more.

In response, Turkey launched anti-terror operations at home and abroad to prevent further attacks.

*Writing by Gozde Bayar in Ankara