TURKEY: Turkey claimed yesterday it had foiled a plot by al-Qaeda-linked militants to launch a bomb attack on a NATO summit in Istanbul next month that Tony Blair and George Bush are to attend.
Sixteen men, suspected members of Ansar al-Islam, a group linked to Osama bin-Laden's terror network, appeared in a Turkish provincial court yesterday where the local governor said the attack plan has been "rendered ineffective." The men were arrested in an operation last Thursday in the northwestern province of Bursa, said Governor Oguz Kagan Koksal. The suspects were also planning to attack a synagogue in Bursa and rob a bank to raise funds for the group, he said.
Nine others were detained in a simultaneous raid in Istanbul. They were questioned yesterday, but later released, officials said.
The crackdown on the group comes amid heightened security in Turkey in the run-up to the summit on June 28th/29th, following a string of bombings in Istanbul in November.
More than 60 people were killed when suspected members of a Turkish al-Qaeda cell bombed two synagogues, a London-based bank and the British consulate. Turkish officials have charged 69 suspects in connection with the bombings.
Istanbul's governor, Mr Muammer Guler, insisted yesterday that the city, which will also host the Eurovision song contest later this month, and a meeting of foreign ministers from Islamic countries in June, is safe.
"There is no question of a situation that will affect the NATO meeting," Mr Guler said. "We have taken every precaution." The 16 arrested men face charges including membership of a terrorist group, possession of explosives, violating gun laws and holding fake identity documents.- (AP)