Türkiye Nabs IS Daesh Suspect Plotting New Year Attack

Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) has apprehended another suspected Daesh member who was allegedly planning an attack on New Year’s celebrations, security sources reported Friday.

The suspect, identified as Ibrahim Burtakuçin, was captured in the eastern Malatya province during a joint operation with the city police, The Caspian Post reports, citing Turkish media.

According to security sources, intelligence work showed Burtakuçin was operating in Türkiye on behalf of the Daesh terrorist group, was in contact with sympathizers at home and abroad, and sought to travel from Türkiye to conflict zones to join the group.

Security forces seized digital materials and banned publications from his home, including Daesh software, images of the group’s flag, audio files used to promote suicide attacks, and photos and videos of Daesh members and leaders.

The operation also comes after authorities detained 115 more suspected members of Daesh in simultaneous raids on Thursday, who were allegedly planning attacks against Christmas and New Year’s celebrations.

Counterterrorism police were running an investigation into Daesh ahead of the new year and Christmas celebrations in Muslim-majority Türkiye. Upon intelligence that Daesh was issuing calls to its members to carry out attacks, operations were planned, and authorities issued arrest warrants for 137 suspects.

All were linked to Daesh members in other countries, and some already had outstanding arrest warrants in previous investigations. Police raided 124 locations across the city, capturing suspects and seizing weapons, as well as Daesh propaganda materials. Operations are still underway to capture the suspects at large.

Türkiye has suffered from several Daesh attacks in recent years. On Jan. 1, 2017, a Daesh gunman stormed a popular nightclub by the Bosporus and killed 39 people. This was, however, a less severe attack compared to the 2015 suicide bombings at an Ankara train station, which killed more than 100 people.

Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) captured Mehmet Gören, a senior Daesh-K terrorist figure who was tasked with carrying out a suicide attack on behalf of the terrorist group, in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region and brought him to Türkiye, security sources said Monday.