Middle East Affairs

By Middle East Affairs 

State-run news agency Anadolu reported ahead of this week’s election that Turkish police had stopped 14 ISIS members from carrying out their attack in Ankara.

The agency reported that counter-terror police raided several locations in Ankara and was successful in arresting and interrogating all suspected ISIS members, all of whom were foreign personnel.

ISIS raids are now routine for Turkey police, especially, in the time of elections, as a way to boost morale for the ruling party.

The extremist Islamic terror group has been responsible for several attacks in Turkey, in 2015-2016 attacks were routine and almost weekly. They claimed the lives of 39 people on a nightclub in New Years celebration on January 1, 2017, as well as an attack in the heart of the city center, a few months apart.

Elections will be held in Turkey this weekend to vote in a presidential and parliamentary election, that will determine the new direction in the country.