By Emrah Gokmen
ISTANBUL (AA) – Turkish security forces arrested 16 foreign nationals for their alleged links to the Daesh/ISIS and al-Qaeda terrorist organizations, security sources said on Thursday.
Istanbul police anti-terror teams launched an operation to apprehend suspects linked to Daesh/ISIS and al-Qaeda, the sources said, requesting anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Turkish police raided 15 addresses in eight districts across the city to arrest the suspects identified as “foreign terrorist fighters,” the sources added.
In 2013, Türkiye became one of the first countries to declare Daesh/ISIS a terrorist organization.
The country has since been attacked by the terror group multiple times, with over 300 people killed and hundreds more injured in at least 10 suicide bombings, seven bomb attacks, and four armed attacks.
In response, Türkiye launched anti-terror operations at home and abroad to prevent further attacks.