15 suspected Kurdish militants arrested in Istanbul

Fifteen suspected members of the youth wing of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) were arrested across Istanbul on Saturday, Anadolu Agency‎ quoted police as saying on Sunday.

Counter-terrorism police carried out raids on 23 addresses, mostly in the city’s working class Kucukcekmece and Bagcilar suburbs.

Those arrested are thought to be members of the Patriotic Revolutionary Youth Movement (YDG-H), the youth wing of the PKK that is active in Turkey’s cities.

An unlicensed gun, bullets, documents and digital material was seized at the addresses, police said.

The detentions were the latest in a series of operations launched across Turkey in the wake of the July 20 bombing in Suruc. More than 1,700 suspects linked to the PKK, Daesh and leftist militant groups have been arrested.

The wave of arrests followed a rise in attacks on security forces by the PKK. Around 40 security force personnel have been killed since the July 20 Suruc suicide bomb attack that claimed 33 people.