Meanwhile, the Istanbul prosecutor ordered the arrest of 137 suspected members of the Islamic State (IS) group, 115 of whom were detained this Thursday, on suspicion of planning attacks during the end-of-year festivities period.
According to a statement from the prosecutor’s office, the arrest order took place “after receiving data from intelligence services indicating that the terrorist organization Islamic State was planning attacks during Christmas and New Year celebrations”.
Similar arrests are regularly carried out at the end of the year, before the traditional New Year celebrations. Turkey, which shares a 900-kilometer border with Syria, fears the infiltration of the Islamic extremist group, which remains active in its neighboring country.
The Islamic State was recently accused of attacking Americans in Palmyra, Syria, killing two soldiers and an interpreter.
Turkish intelligence services announced this week the arrest, “between Afghanistan and Pakistan”, of an alleged head of the Islamic State group, who is said to be planning attacks in the region and even in Europe.
At the time of his arrest, the suspect, Mehmet Gören, who has since been taken to Turkey, was accused by Turkish intelligence services of “planning suicide attacks against civilians in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkey and Europe”.
Several countries, including France, reported a particularly high terrorist threat late this year.