Talip Güler, codenamed "Abdüsselam Türki," was captured in Syria and brought to the country by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT), security sources said on Monday.
Güler was the brother of Kasım Güler, another top Daesh figure and was part of the group’s network in Türkiye known as “Farouk Office” or Maktab Al-Faruq.” He was on the Interior Ministry’s most wanted list. Kasım Güler himself was captured in another MIT operation in 2021 and brought to Türkiye.
Security sources said Güler illegally crossed into Syria in January 2014, at the height of the civil war in the country where Daesh thrived. He coordinated the activities of the group alongside his elder brother. After apprehending elder Güler, MIT closed in on Talip Güler, running surveillance on his every step, sources said.
Güler was cooperative with authorities after he was taken to Türkiye and elaborated on how he was “radicalized,” how he sneaked into Syria and joined the terrorist group and his actions for Daesh in cooperation with his brother.
Last month, MIT also apprehended Ahmet Kazancı, another top Daesh figure, as he was planning to infiltrate Türkiye.
Daesh remains a threat to Türkiye, which lost dozens of citizens in attacks by the group that thrived in its southern neighbors, Iraq and Syria.
Since the 2019 collapse of the self-proclaimed “caliphate,” some suspected Daesh members have settled in Türkiye, operating the so-called Khorasan Province (Daesh-K) network, which looks for “new methods” and recruits more foreign nationals for its activities after constant counterterrorism operations became a “challenge,” according to Turkish security sources.
MIT thwarted the terrorist group's efforts for recruitment, obtaining funds and logistics support after its latest operation in the aftermath of a church shooting in Istanbul in January 2024.
Türkiye was one of the first countries to declare Daesh a terrorist group in 2013 and carried out a steady stream of operations to thwart the group, rounding up hundreds of suspects over the past few years. Operations prevented plots by Daesh to attack places of worship in Türkiye. Terrorists from Daesh and other groups, such as the PKK and its Syrian wing, the YPG, rely on a network of members and supporters in Türkiye. Turkish authorities have ordered the freezing of millions of lira worth of assets since 2013 to crack down on terrorism financiers in line with U.N. sanctions.
