01 January 2018•Update: 03 January 2018
By Volkan Kasik
MALATYA, Turkey
At least 317 people, including foreigners were arrested across Turkey for suspected links with Daesh terror group over the last month.
According to information compiled by Anadolu Agency, 40 suspects out of the total were remanded in custody while some of them were deported.
In Istanbul, police arrested 62 foreigners during simultaneous operations carried out at 12 separate addresses for suspected Daesh links.
Police also detained a French couple at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen Airport for alleged links with Daesh terrorist group.
Another 129 Daesh suspects were detained in the metropolis ahead of New Year’s Eve while 46 others were arrested in separate operations.
In the capital, 29 Daesh suspects, including foreigners were arrested.
In central Nevsehir province, another suspect, who was at large, was also arrested.
In southern Adana province, a Daesh suspect, who was hospitalized after a bomb exploded alongside a road in Syria, was detained at a hospital.
In central Kirsehir province, a suspected senior Daesh member, who was allegedly in contact with Halis Bayancuk, known also by the codename “Abu Hanzala”, was remanded in custody.
In southeastern Sanliurfa province, two suspects, including a Syrian national, were remanded for suspected Daesh links, while two Iraqis were remanded in northwestern Bolu province.
Five others were also remanded in southeastern Kilis and northwestern Sakarya province.
In Istanbul, a Syrian national was remanded in custody for planning an attack on high-ranking government managers.
In southern Hatay province, 12 people were arrested, while another person was detained in Bursa while another three suspects were held in southeastern Gaziantep province for alleged links with the terrorist organization.
Turkish security forces have been involved in a long-running campaign to thwart Daesh attacks. More than 300 people have lost their lives in Daesh-claimed attacks in Turkey, where the terror organization has targeted civilians in suicide bombings, and rocket-and-gun attacks.
