Turkey detains top Islamic State commander in raid
Turkish police have arrested the top Islamic State (IS) commander in the country, the government says.
Mahmut
Ozden had "important plans" in his possession and had received orders
to carry out an attack, the Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said.
He was detained in Adana province, and Mr Soylu said an operation was continuing against other IS figures.
IS officially announced its presence in Turkey in 2019 and has conducted numerous attacks in the country.
"[The
suspect] had been constantly receiving orders from both Iraq and Syria
to carry out an attack in Turkey," Mr Soylu said on Tuesday.
What do we know about the suspect?
Ozden
had been planning to carry out attacks with groups of 10 to 12 IS
terrorists, Mr Soylu said. He referred to the suspect as the group's
"emir" in Turkey.
Plans
seized during the raid revealed he had been plotting to kidnap several
politicians, according to the Daily Sabah newspaper.
Computers, documents, weapons and ammunition were also seized during the operation in the south-eastern province of Adana.
Three other suspected terrorists were detained in the counterterrorism operation, the Anadolu Agency reported.
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