Turkey has initiated a sweeping search operation to apprehend members of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group, with 147 suspected militants arrested in eighty-six operations conducted across the country, as reported by AFP.

Confirming the operation, the Turkish Ministry of Interior, in a statement on Tuesday (March 26), announced that security forces had conducted extensive searches, including in tea plantations across 30 provinces. Interior Minister Ali Yarlikaya emphasized that these raids were conducted based on confidential information obtained by security agencies, leading to the identification of militant hideouts.

The detained individuals are suspected of having links to the militant group IS, with some allegedly involved in clashes in various regions and others accused of providing financial support to the organization.

The intensified crackdown comes in the wake of an unprecedented terrorist attack at the Crocus Concert Hall in Moscow last Friday (March 22), where 137 people tragically lost their lives in a brutal assault involving indiscriminate gunfire and arson. Following the attack, the Islamic State claimed responsibility, prompting Turkey to launch its eighty-sixth operation to root out IS members within its borders.