Russian man held in Turkey for planning to down a US plane

Turkish authorities detain a Russian national and suspected Islamic State member for allegedly planning a drone attack on US aircraft at Turkey’s Incirlik air base, police say.

Renad Bakiev is detained in the southern city of Adana over suspicions that he plotted to crash an American aircraft or attack the Incirlik air base using a drone, Adana police say in a statement.

Bakiev also intended to attack the local Alevi community in Adana city, the statement says. It says he was affiliated with IS and had previously traveled to Syria.

The Alevi religious minority is an offshoot of Shia Islam and is the largest religious group in Turkey after Sunnis. IS regards Alevis as heretics.

— AP