Turkey arrests 2 foreign nationals for links to terrorist groups

Police arrested two foreign nationals in central Turkey over their alleged links to terrorist groups, security sources said Thursday.

The suspects – both Syrian nationals – were arrested in Nevşehir province when police raided two addresses, said security sources who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The raids come after police found that the suspect, only known by the initials A.E.V., had worked for several branches of the PKK terrorist group, including the YPG, KCK and YPD, and the other suspect, only known by the initials M.M.A.M, allegedly belonged to the Daesh terrorist group. The YPG and its political wing, the PYD, are the Syrian offshoots of the PKK. The KCK serves as an umbrella body of the PKK and its Syrian and Iranian offshoots.

Various digital materials and a blank firing gun were also seized during the operation.

The terror suspects were handed over to authorities to be deported.

In its more than 40-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of at least 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.

In its fight against Daesh, Turkey became one of the first countries to declare it a terrorist group in 2013.

The country has since been attacked by the terrorist group multiple times, with over 300 people killed and hundreds more injured in at least 10 suicide bombings, seven bomb attacks and four armed assaults.

In response, Turkey launched anti-terror operations at home and abroad to prevent further attacks.