Turkish police detained 115 suspected members of the Islamic State terrorist group (IS) on Thursday after raids targeting alleged plots to attack Christmas and New Year celebrations.
Istanbul’s chief prosecutor said authorities issued arrest warrants for 137 suspects allegedly preparing attacks during the festive period.
Police raided 124 addresses across Istanbul, detaining 115 people while efforts to capture the remaining 22 suspects continue.
Officers seized pistols, ammunition and organisational documents during the searches. The prosecutor’s office said some suspects had been linked to participation in conflicts and others faced arrest warrants for terrorism offences at national and international level.
Ankara’s provincial gendarmerie command warned on 19 December that IS might carry out attacks in Ankara and Istanbul before New Year’s Eve.
The warning said the group planned simultaneous attacks targeting shopping centres and public markets, potentially through armed attacks, suicide bombings, car bombs, drone strikes or vehicle-ramming incidents.
Financing network dismantled
Earlier this week, Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issued detention warrants for 10 suspects in an investigation into the IS group’s financial structure, authorities said Tuesday.
An investigation by the Terrorism Crimes Investigation Bureau, using Financial Crimes Investigation Board reports and social media analyses, revealed the organisation’s structure in Ankara.
Suspects provided cash to IS members and their families in conflict zones in Syria through bank accounts with explanations such as “call for unity, atonement, aid for captive sisters,” investigators said.
IS previously carried out several deadly attacks across Turkey.
On 10 October 2015, IS suicide bombers attacked a peace rally outside Ankara railway station, killing at least 102 people and injuring over 400 in the deadliest terror attack in Turkish history. Trials related to the attack remain ongoing.
On 1 January 2017, a gunman attacked Reina nightclub in Istanbul during New Year’s celebrations, killing 39 people.
In addition, hundreds of civilians lost their lives in IS attacks on Atatürk Airport, Suruç and Diyarbakır between 2015 and 2017.
