Turkish police detain 29 Daesh suspects in Istanbul

Operation launched in Baykan town of Turkey's Siirt province following an improvised explosive device attack on the vehicle of a district official in the area.

Turkish special forces take position on April 1, 2015 near the police headquarters in Istanbul.
TRT World and Agencies

Turkish special forces take position on April 1, 2015 near the police headquarters in Istanbul.

Turkish police have detained 29 suspected Daesh terrorists in Istanbul, 22 of them foreign nationals, believed to be preparing to travel to Syria, the Turkey's Anadolu news agency said on Friday.

Anti-terrorism police carried out operations at 20 separate addresses in six city districts overnight, Anadolu said, adding that one unlicensed weapon and documents belonging to the group were found in the raids.

Thousands of foreign fighters have joined Daesh terror group in their self-proclaimed caliphate in Syria and Iraq in recent years.

Ankara has detained more than 5,000 Daesh suspects and deported some 3,290 foreign militants from 95 different countries in recent years, according to Turkish officials. It has also refused entry to at least 38,269 individuals.

On Wednesday, Turkish police detained six suspected Daesh terrorists for planning to attack a protest march led by the head of Turkey's main opposition party.

Operation launched against PKK in Siirt province

A counter-terrorism operation was launched in Baykan town of Turkey's Siirt province on Friday following an improvised explosive device (IED) attack on the vehicle of a district official in the area.

Turkish officials said that PKK terrorists had detonated an improvised explosive device in southeastern Turkey as the armoured vehicle of a district official was passing by. No one was injured in the attack.

The blast occurred Friday in the town of Baykan in the province of Siirt. It came days after two AK Party officials serving in district organisations were murdered in attacks also blamed on the PKK.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said an operation was launched in the area to catch the assailants, adding that such attacks would not "end (Turkey's) patience and determination" in the fight against the PKK.

In another anti-terror operation in Turkey's Hakkari, security forces killed three PKK terrorists, Turkish General Staff said Friday.

Also on Thursday, two suspected terrorists were arrested, and weapons including a rifle, a pistol, and 90 gas masks were seized in southeastern Diyarbakir province.

The PKK is recognised as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the US and the EU. The group resumed its deadly armed campaign against Turkey in July 2015.

Since then, it has been responsible for the deaths of around 1,200 people, including security personnel, several women and children.

More than 10,000 PKK members have been killed or apprehended in anti-terror operations, according to authorities.

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