Authorities announced the capture of 39 suspects in counterterrorism operations in Istanbul and nine cities on Tuesday. Suspects were linked to far-left terrorist groups.
Istanbul Chief Prosecutor’s Office coordinated the probe that led to operations by counterterrorism units of the Istanbul police. The probe was based on testimonies by suspects detained in earlier operations.
Authorities issued arrest warrants for 52 suspects, including 44 from the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP), four from TIKKO, the armed wing of the outlawed group Communist Party of Türkiye/Marxist Leninist (TKP-ML), three suspects from Revolutionary Socialist Workers’ Party (DSIH) and one suspect from Maoist Communist Party (MKP). Three suspects remain at large, eight others were discovered to have fled abroad earlier and two others were already in prison on other offenses.
The suspects were detained in operations in Istanbul, Ankara, Adana, Antalya, Aydın, Balıkesir, Diyarbakır, Mersin, Muğla and Şanlıurfa. Police seized one pistol and munitions during the raids to capture the suspects, along with propaganda material of the terrorist groups.
