Turkish police detain 100 over Islamic State ties, warn of terror plots

ISTANBUL — Turkey’s police chief says 100 people have been detained in raids against the Islamic State throughout the country, adding the group was planning an attack.

Police Chief Mehmet Aktas says the suspects were detained in 26 raids across 21 provinces. They were allegedly preparing for a possible attack to coincide with Tuesday’s celebrations marking the 96th anniversary of the founding of the Turkish Republic.

Turkey has stepped up security following IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s death in a US military raid in Syria earlier this week. Police on Monday detained 20 foreign nationals suspected of IS links in a security sweep in Ankara.

Turkey was hit by a wave of attacks in 2015 and 2016 blamed on IS and Kurdish groups that killed over 300 people.

— AP