UPDATES NUMBER OF ARRESTED SUSPECTS TO 165, FROM 111 IN ANKARA, ADDS MORE ARRESTS IN KUTAHYA, ESKISEHIR
By Cankut Tasdan, Ugur Ulu and Sertac Bulur
ANKARA, Turkey (AA) - A total of 165 Daesh terror suspects were arrested in Ankara on Thursday, according to a police source.
The Ankara Police Department's anti-terrorism branch launched an operation with the participation of 1,500 officers after arrest warrants were issued for 245 suspects by the capital's public prosecutor's office, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to media.
Out of 245 suspects, a total of 165 suspects were arrested in simultaneous operations at 250 locations in the Sincan, Etimesgut, and Cubuk districts.
Separately, 27 Daesh suspects including Syrians were arrested in the Osmangazi and Yildirim districts of the western Bursa province.
Another counter-terror operation in the eastern province of Bingol also saw seven Daesh suspects arrested on Thursday.
Elsewhere, in the Aegean province of Kutahya, three Iraqi nationals were arrested over links to Daesh during a counter-terror operation. The arrests came after Kutahya prosecutors issued arrest warrants.
Also, in the central Eskisehir province, another operation led to the arrests of four Daesh suspects, including two foreign nationals.
Turkish security forces have been involved in a long-running campaign to thwart Daesh attacks.
Since August last year, Istanbul police have carried out over 100 operations and detained nearly 1,000 suspects.