Turkey nabs Daesh/ISIS suspect near military zone

By Halil Demir

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish security forces arrested a suspected member of the terror group Daesh/ISIS near a restricted military zone in Istanbul, a security source said Thursday.

On Saturday, acting on a tip that a person who climbed a tree next to a military zone in the Bahcelievler district was surveilling the military, police were dispatched to the area, said the source on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The police caught Muhammed Yahya E., who was apparently trying to surveil the Yenibosna Military Police Battalion Command, the source said.

A search of the suspect found digital materials, images, and documents related to the terror group Daesh/ISIS.

After police procedures, the suspect on Thursday was remanded in custody by a court.

In 2013, Turkey became one of the first countries to declare Daesh/ISIS a terrorist group.

The country has since been attacked by the terror group multiple times, with over 300 people killed and hundreds more injured in at least 10 suicide bombings, seven bomb attacks, and four armed assaults.

In response, Turkey launched anti-terror operations at home and abroad to prevent further attacks.

*Writing by Sena Guler in Ankara