Asia

Asia

Police arrest al-Qaeda members with US Consulate building plan, explosives

28 February 2013 20:19 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. In a counterterrorism operation carried out by the TekirdaÄŸ Police Department on Wednesday, 11 al-Qaeda members were captured with 22 kilograms of A4 explosives, after reportedly planning to stage terrorist attacks on targets in Ä°stanbul, including the US Consulate, a synagogue and a church, APA reports quoting Todays Zaman.

According to TekirdaÄŸ police, a person suspected of being an al-Qaeda member had been tracked by police for two years. During this period, police found out that a group of al-Qaeda members had cell houses in the Çorlu district of TekirdaÄŸ and the Büyülçekmece district of Ä°stanbul.

After TekirdaÄŸ police discovered that suspects had obtained a large amount of explosives in mid-February, an operation was launched against the terrorist group. Police raided nine houses in Çorlu and two in Büyükçekmece. A total of 11 people were captured with 22 kilograms of A4 explosives, five rifles, five handguns and maps showing the detailed location of the US Consulate in Ä°stanbul along with a church and a synagogue in Ä°stanbul's Fatih district.