Iran has identified tens of thousands of agents of Israel's spy agency Mossad in 28 countries of the world including Asia, Africa and Europe. Before the news broke, Turkey detained seven people on suspicion of providing information to the Mossad. Reuters reported on Saturday.
Turkish police and the country's MIT intelligence agency conducted joint operations in Istanbul and Izmir, a Turkish security official said on condition of anonymity. "As part of this they investigated the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor's Office and arrested the suspects."
Earlier, the country had identified and arrested Mossad spies. Reuters also reported that while Turkey's western allies and some Arab countries have listed the Palestinian independence armed group, Hamas, as a terrorist organization, they consider Hamas to be an independence organization.
A month ago, 34 people were charged with espionage on suspicion of involvement with the Israeli spy agency Mossad. There is strong discontent among the country about the activities of the Mossad inside Turkey. The Palestinian issue has widespread support among the people of the country.
Turkey's president has warned Israel of "serious consequences" if it targets Hamas members on Turkish soil. Ankara has yet to issue an official statement on Friday's arrest. But the official, who did not want to be named, said the suspected Mossad member was monitoring Hamas' movements.
Since the start of the Hamas-Israel war, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been embroiled in a bitter war of words with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He described Netanyahu's actions in Gaza as 'genocide' and compared him to Hitler last month.
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