11 Islamic State Suspects Detained in W. Türkiye

ISTANBUL/ANKARA, Xinhua: Eleven suspected members of the Islamic State (IS) have been detained in Türkiye’s western province of Izmir on Tuesday, local media reported.

Counter-terrorism units initiated the operation as part of an investigation led by the Izmir Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, the state-run TRT broadcaster said.

The suspects were accused of engaging in IS-related activities in the Menemen district.

Police also seized weapons, organizational publications, and numerous digital materials during searches conducted at the suspects’ residences.

The Turkish government designated IS as a terrorist organization in 2013, blaming it for a spate of deadly attacks in the country since 2015, including a January attack on a Roman Catholic Church in Istanbul that killed one person.

Meanwhile, Türkiye said on Tuesday it “neutralized” a total of 13 “terrorists” in northern Iraq and northern Syria.

“The Turkish Armed Forces neutralized 10 Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terrorists detected in Operation Claw and Operation Claw-Lock zones in northern Iraq, and three Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) terrorists in Operation Olive Branch zone in northern Syria,” the country’s Defense Ministry said on social media platform X, without specifying the time frame of the operations.

Turkish authorities often use the term “neutralized” in their statements to imply the “terrorists” in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

Türkiye sees the YPG group as the Syrian branch of the PKK group, which, listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the United States, and the European Union, has rebelled against the Turkish government for more than three decades.