IS suspects held over embassy ‘attack plot’
US CITIZENS GIVEN WARNING
TURKISH police have detained four Islamic State suspects as part of an investigation into a possible attack on the US Embassy in Ankara, the country’s state-run news agency has reported.
The embassy was closed yesterday over an unspecified security threat. The Anadolu Agency said police detained four Iraqi nationals in connection with the threat against the embassy.
Two of them were detained on a bus at a security checkpoint on a road linking the Black Sea city of Samsun to Ankara. Two others were detained in Samsun.
The agency identified the suspects by their first names only.
Security was high outside the US Embassy and police searched pedestrians before allowing them to enter a street where the main gate is located.
The US Embassy said on its web page late on Sunday that the mission would be closed due to a security threat, and urged US citizens to avoid the embassy as well as large crowds. It also advised citizens to “keep a low profile”.
The Ankara governor’s office said authorities had reviewed security in the capital and had taken additional measures, following intelligence provided by US “sources” about possible attacks against the embassy or where Americans are staying.
Turkey suffered a slew of deadly terror attacks in 2015 and 2016 carried out by IS or Kurdish rebels.