An İstanbul court ordered 67 suspects jailed pending trial after prosecutors brought 147 people to court in an investigation into the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
The case was led by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, which said the suspects were detained in raids on December 30 at 114 locations in İstanbul and two other provinces.
Prosecutors said 48 suspects were released under judicial supervision and 32 other detainees were transferred to a repatriation center for deportation on the grounds that they posed a threat to national security.
The prosecutor’s office said some suspects were linked to an ISIL cell targeted in northwestern Yalova province in an operation that led to an hours-long gun battle on December 29.
Three police officers and six ISIL members were killed in the operation.
Turkish authorities launched a series of raids before and after the Yalova operation, saying they were trying to disrupt recruitment, propaganda and logistics networks and prevent attacks tied to New Year’s celebrations.
Turkey has blamed ISIL for multiple attacks over the past decade, including a January 2017 nightclub shooting in İstanbul that killed 39 people.