Arrest of 48 ISIS Suspects in Ankara and Istanbul

On Saturday, February 10, Turkish police announced the arrest of 48 ISIS members who were preparing for a 'terrorist attack.' An Istanbul police spokesperson stated that police forces arrested 31 foreign nationals in a raid on six buildings across three neighborhoods in Istanbul on Friday night. Anadolu Agency reported that 17 other foreign nationals, also preparing for a terrorist attack, were arrested in Ankara, the capital of the country. Anadolu did not provide further details about the arrests in Ankara. The agency added that police seized digital documents and evidence from these individuals. In the years 2015, 2016, and 2017, Turkey experienced bloody terrorist attacks, which the country attributed to ISIS or Kurdish militants. Abdulhamit Gul, Turkey's Minister of Justice, announced on Saturday that 1,354 people have been arrested in the country on charges of membership in ISIS. On New Year's Eve in 2017, an ISIS member killed 39 people in a shooting at a nightclub in Istanbul, for which ISIS claimed responsibility. Following this attack, Turkish security forces intensified their operations against ISIS in the country. The ISIS group, which once controlled a vast area of Iraq and Syria, has lost nearly all of its territory. In 2014, ISIS declared the establishment of a caliphate in Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city. This caliphate, which included Syria and Iraq, was severely weakened in July 2017 with the loss of Mosul. Iraq announced the end of the battle against ISIS on December 9 of this year. Iraqi armed forces received support from both Iran and the United States in the fight against ISIS. The Syrian army also declared victory in the war against ISIS on November 10. Russia, Iran, and Shia militias supported Bashar al-Assad's government in this war. Meanwhile, the US-led coalition against ISIS was also engaged in separate battles with ISIS forces in Syria, with Turkey being part of this coalition. However, tensions between Turkey and the US have increased due to US support for the People's Protection Units in the Syrian civil war. Turkey is currently conducting operations against Kurdish militants, who are backed by the US, in Syrian territory.