Turkey has detained 33 suspects linked to the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group believed to be plotting attacks ahead of local elections later this month, Sabah reported.
The suspects were "preparing and seeking action ahead of the upcoming local elections," Interior Minister Ali Erlikaya said in H. Elections across the country are due to be held on March 31.
Counter-terrorism police in Sakarya, northwestern Turkey, seized weapons, cash and "organizational documents" during raids.
"We will not tolerate any terrorists. We will continue our fight without interruption with the superior efforts of our security forces," Erlikaya said.
The network provided personnel to war zones and financial support to ISIS, while operating out of illegal mosques and religious schools, he said.
Turkey has stepped up operations against ISIS terrorists after the group attacked a church in Istanbul in late January, killing a civilian man during Sunday mass.
Daesh manages a network in the so-called Khorasan Province (Daesh-K) in Turkey, which is looking for new "methods" and recruiting more foreign members for its activities after constant counter-terrorism operations became a "challenge", security sources said.
The National Intelligence Organization (NIO) has thwarted the terrorist group's efforts to recruit, obtain funds and logistical support since its latest operation following the church shooting.
ISIS remains the second biggest terrorist threat to Turkey, which faces security risks from multiple terrorist groups and was one of the first countries to designate it as a terrorist group in 2013.
In December last year, Turkish security forces detained 32 suspects with alleged links to ISIS who were planning attacks on churches and synagogues, as well as the Iraqi embassy.
ISIS militants have so far not targeted places of worship on Turkish soil, but have carried out a number of attacks, including an Istanbul nightclub in 2017 that killed 39 people, and a bombing in Ankara in 2015 that which killed 109 people.
Turkish airstrikes are also targeting ISIS hideouts in northern Iraq and Syria near the Turkish border.
ISIS terrorists and other groups, such as the PKK and its Syrian wing YPG, rely on a network of members and supporters in Turkey. In response, Ankara is conducting spot operations and asset freezes to eliminate terrorist groups at their roots. Since 2011, Turkey has deported 9,000 foreign terrorist fighters, mainly from ISIS, of 102 different nationalities, of which 1,168 are from the United States or European Union member states.
In the past nine months, Turkish police have also arrested 656 ISIS terrorists in operations across the country and foiled 19 attempted attacks, Yerlikaya's office figures show. /BGNES
