ANKARA: Turkey has apprehended numerous individuals suspected of having ties to ISIS (ISIL).
The arrests took place across 32 provinces in operations intensified by Ankara against ISIS and Kurdish groups following incidents such as a bomb explosion near government buildings in early October.
Most detainees were captured in Ankara, Istanbul, and Izmir, Turkey’s largest cities. The nationalities of those detained haven’t been disclosed.
The operations, simultaneously conducted nationwide, involved police entering residences and buildings to apprehend suspects.
ISIL emerged after the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, originating from a coalition between an al-Qaeda faction and remnants of Iraq’s ousted Baath Party.
At its peak in 2014, ISIL controlled significant parts of Iraq and Syria.
Recent events linked to ISIL include the killing of 19 villagers in DR Congo by an ISIL-linked armed group, an ISIL member in the UK being sentenced to eight years in prison, and ISIL claiming responsibility for a bombing at a Catholic mass in the Philippines.
