Türkiye arrests 110 on suspicion of ISIL ties

Türkiye arrests 110 on suspicion of ISIL ties

ISTANBUL
Türkiye arrests 110 on suspicion of ISIL ties

Turkish counter-terror police on Tuesday arrested 110 people on suspicion of activities in support of the ISIL terror group in an operation largely targeting Istanbul, the Anadolu state news agency said.

The suspects are accused of organising classes in illegal associations, educating young children with IS ideology, collecting money for the group and seeking to recruit new ISIL members, in an operation coordinated by the Istanbul chief prosecutor's office.

The arrests came during simultaneous raids across three provinces, centred in Istanbul, with police seizing four rifles and 90 cartridges along with documents and digital materials.

Last week, police arrested another 324 people in raids targeting ISIL suspects across 47 provinces, the interior ministry said.

On April 7, a gunman was killed and two others were wounded in a shootout outside the Israeli consulate in Istanbul.

Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi said one of them was linked to an "organization that exploits religion", which Turkish media reported was ISIL.

At the end of December, ISIL militants opened fire on police in the northwestern town of Yalova, killing three officers and wounding nine others.

Six ISIL militants were also killed in the hours-long gun battle that followed, with Turkey rounding up more than 600 suspected members of the group in the following weeks.

Türkiye,