Turkey arrests 3 IS suspects over ‘LGBT rally plot’

Turkish authorities have arrested three suspected Islamic State (IS) jihadists in a probe into a planned attack on a transgender rights rally last weekend, a report says.

The three, comprising one Turkish national and two men from Russia’s volatile Caucasus region of Dagestan, were detained in raids on Friday and remanded in custody by a court on Tuesday, the Dogan news agency says.

Items including suicide belts packed with explosives, camouflage gear and military knives were seized by the authorities, it adds. The three had been planning to attack a rally around Istanbul’s Taksim Square promoting transgender rights. The gathering took place on Sunday but was broken up by police.

Dogan says the raids had been conducted in the Istanbul districts of Basaksehir and Pendik after police acted on a tip-off.

— AFP