Security forces arrested 48 foreigners in Istanbul and Ankara on Saturday over their suspected links to Daesh.
Istanbul Police Department’s Anti-Terrorism Branch launched an operation to nab the suspects who were allegedly planning to carry out terror attacks.
Thirty one suspects were arrested in three districts of Istanbul and 17 Daesh suspects were also detained in Ankara during simultaneous operations, according to a security source who asked not to be named due to restrictions on talking to the media.
Turkish security forces have been involved in a long-running campaign to thwart attacks by Daesh as well as the PKK terrorist organisations.
More than 300 people have lost their lives in Daesh-claimed attacks alone in Turkey, where the group has targeted civilians in suicide bomb, rocket and gun attacks.
The last attack claimed by Daesh was in January 2017 when a gunman killed 39 people at the Istanbul nightclub Reina during New Year’s celebrations.
Police have since then stepped up its raids against Daesh across the country including in the northern province of Samsun on Wednesday, February 7, when six Iraqis were detained on suspicion of being members of Daesh.
Earlier during the day, Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul said Turkey has either remanded in custody or convicted 1,354 Daesh suspects.
Turkey is also conducting Olive Branch Operation to clear the border area in northern Syria of PKK/YPG and Daesh.
The YPG is the Syrian offshoot of the PKK, which has waged a bloody campaign against the Turkish state for more than three decades and is recognised as a terror group by the US, Ankara and the European Union.
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