Turkey Arrests 68 on Suspicion of Planning Further Attacks

Turkish security forces arrested 68 individuals suspected of being members of the Islamic State (ISIS) following a suicide bombing in Istanbul on Tuesday. According to a report by the French news agency on Wednesday, January 13, citing Turkish state media, three of the suspects are Russian citizens, all of whom were detained in Antalya. The report states that 65 other suspects were arrested on Tuesday in cities including Ankara, Izmir, Sanliurfa near the Syrian border, the border town of Kilis, Mersin along the Mediterranean Sea, and Adana in southern Turkey. Turkish officials indicated that 16 suspects detained in Ankara were preparing for an attack in the Turkish capital, while 21 others arrested in Sanliurfa were planning another attack. The Tuesday attack in Istanbul resulted in the deaths of 10 people, most of whom were German tourists. The explosion occurred near the famous Sultan Ahmed Mosque, a major tourist site in Istanbul. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that the perpetrator of the suicide attack was a Syrian citizen. Meanwhile, the Turkish Interior Minister announced in a press conference alongside his German counterpart that one of the detainees had direct links to the Tuesday attack. Afkan Ala emphasized that investigations would continue extensively. Turkish cities have been targeted by multiple attacks in recent months, including a bomb explosion during a peace rally in Ankara that killed 95 people. Istanbul has also been a primary target of these attacks, with a recent explosion at the airport resulting in one death. Turkey has pointed the finger at ISIS. According to Reuters, the Turkish Interior Ministry reports that since the start of the Syrian civil war, a total of 3,318 individuals have been arrested in Turkey on charges of links to ISIS and other extremist groups.