Turkish police on Thursday captured a Daesh terrorist plotting to attack synagogues and Jewish schools in Istanbul.
The terrorist, identified as Uzbek national Abdulmalik A., belongs to Daesh’s so-called Asia branch and entered Türkiye legally from a European country, authorities said.
He was able to do so because he did not have a criminal record related to terrorism, they added.
Istanbul’s counterterrorism police placed him under surveillance after a tip that said he would be sent to Türkiye for a “sensational” attack.
Police discovered coded messages between the terrorist and suspects with alleged connections to Daesh by infiltrating an email network between people with radical inclinations.
Police said he had been instructed by a high-ranking Daesh member to prepare large-scale terrorist attacks on synagogues and Jewish schools in Türkiye and European countries, although they did not specify any dates.
Abdulmalik A., who was captured in a basement flat in Istanbul’s Fatih district, was arrested by an Istanbul court on Thursday.
Authorities are currently pursuing his handlers and other Daesh people he was in contact with in Türkiye.
Police have stepped up security measures at synagogues and schools that may be targeted by Daesh.
The most recent attack on a Jewish house of worship in Türkiye took place on Nov. 15, 2003, when al-Qaida detonated bombs at two Istanbul synagogues, Neve Shalom and Beth Yaakov, killing 20 and injuring over 250 people.
In December 2023, Turkish security forces detained 32 suspects over alleged links with Daesh, who were planning attacks on churches and synagogues, as well as the Iraqi Embassy.
In January 2024, two Daesh terrorists opened fire at an Istanbul church where one person was killed and further casualties were prevented when the terrorists’ weapons jammed.
Daesh remains the second biggest threat of terrorism for Türkiye, which faces security risks from multiple terrorist groups and was one of the first countries to declare it as a terrorist group in 2013.
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 intensely targeted Daesh cells with Gürz operations, detaining at least 943 suspects in 2024 alone.
The National Intelligence Organization (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.
Turkish authorities have also ordered the freezing of millions of lira worth of assets since 2013 to crack down on terrorism financiers in line with United Nations sanctions.
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