Turkish police arrested 11 foreign nationals who are suspected of participating in an Islamic State militant group (ISIS) cell in Istanbul just days after three suicide bombers struck the city’s worldwide airport, killing 44 people.
Advertisement
The documents show he denied knowing about the guns hidden in a spare wheel in the trunk.
The state-run Anadolu Agency reported Friday that the Bakirkoy Public Prosecutor’s office established the identity of two of the suspects as foreign nationals Rakim Bulgarov and Vadim Osmanov.
The attack was “extremely well planned with ISIS leadership involved”, the source said.
As Turkey continues to investigate the Istanbul airport bombing and track down suspects, a Turkish official says the mastermind of an earlier suicide bombing has been killed. The Sabah newspaper, which is close to the Turkish government, said police had launched a manhunt for him.
Chatayev, whose nom de guerre is “Akhmed One-Arm”, was added past year by the US Treasury to its list of terrorists for allegedly planning strikes against US and Turkish facilities, CNN reported.
For five years now, foreign fighters have used Turkey as a transit country to reach the Syrian war zone.
It said Sunday the total number of those detained in relation to the shooting and suicide attack at the airport is now 27.
There are conflicting reports about where the bombers came from – including Russia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan – but all are recruiting grounds for ISIS.
Turkish authorities have detained at least 24 people in raids in several Istanbul neighborhoods over possible connections to the attack.
The trio shared a home in Istanbul for the past month, according to Turkish officials.
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, left, speaks with a man injured in Tuesday’s blasts as he visits Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, Saturday, July 2, 2016.
Turkey, a key partner in the US -led coalition against the Islamic State group, also faces security threats from Kurdish rebels who are demanding greater autonomy in Turkey’s southeast region and from ultra-left radicals. The death toll from the attack has now risen to 44, including 19 foreigners, after one more person died overnight. Officials are still trying to determine the name of the third killer.
The broad topic outlined for the meetings looks to find ways to ease the conflict in Syria, but the airport attacks could shift greater focus to the Islamic State and its dependence on Turkey as a lifeline.
The attack against military personnel was claimed by an offshoot of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party, or PKK, which Turkey considers a terrorist organization.
Advertisement
Mehmet Sirin Kaya was killed in the town of Lice in the mainly Kurdish province of Diyarbakir, the official said.
