Turkish security forces detained 10 foreign nationals Wednesday over links to the Daesh terrorist organization in counterterrorism operations in western Turkey's Izmir province.
The Counterterrorism Branch of the Izmir Security Directorate conducted simultaneous operations in the city center, and Bergama and Torbalı districts early in the morning.
Suspects, nine of whom were identified as Syrian nationals with another being Georgian, were detained for having contacts with Daesh terrorists in conflict areas in Syria.
Police also seized an unlicensed gun, a rag bearing the terror group's symbols, documents, digital materials and a fair amount of cash in raids to the properties belonging to the suspects.
The suspects were taken to the security directorate after the necessary checks were done.
Turkish security forces have been involved in a long-running campaign to rid Turkey of Daesh terrorists. The terrorist group is blamed for a string of terror attacks in Turkey that killed dozens of people over the past three years in Istanbul and Ankara as well as cities in the southeast.
Military operations in Syria and Iraq led to a rapid decline in Daesh territories and the number of its militants. Turkey helped the Syrian moderate opposition, the Free Syrian Army (FSA), to regain control of a number of Daesh-controlled towns in an operation in 2016.
Foreigners looking to join Daesh in Syria have mostly attempted to use Turkey as their crossing point. Turkey has taken significant measures against foreign Daesh members and has urged Western countries for intelligence cooperation.
According to official figures, some 2,000 people were arrested and 7,000 others deported in operations against Daesh in Turkey, while around 70,000 people were denied entry to Turkey over their suspected links to the terrorist group.
Security forces have also foiled at least 10 attack plots. Figures show that some 18,500 suspects are currently being monitored for links to the terrorist group after being identified at airports upon arrival.
