Turkish officials have detained 34 persons accused of being related to Israel’s Mossad intelligence service and of targeting Palestinians living in Turkey, according to a senior Turkish official, who added that Mossad also recruited members in the nation.
Last month, Turkish officials warned Israel that it would face “serious consequences” if it attempted to track down members of the militant group Hamas living outside Palestinian areas, including Turkey, according to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, would be a mistake.
According to the official, police raided eight regions as part of an investigation conducted by the MIT intelligence agency and the Istanbul prosecutor’s counterterrorism division.
Earlier, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said the suspects were detained in 57 locations, including in Istanbul, as part of an operation dubbed “Operation Mole,” adding they were believed to be aiming to identify, monitor, assault and kidnap foreign nationals living in Turkey.
According to the official, the accused were also circulating fake news and disinformation, committing thefts, and blackmailing Israeli intelligence. According to the source, Mossad arranged meetings and training for the suspects in other countries.
Mr. Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly exchanged insults last week over Israel’s assault of Gaza during its fight with Hamas.
During the raids, authorities also discovered huge quantities of foreign currency, including roughly 150,000 euros (US$165,100), an unlicensed handgun, and digital files, according to Mr. Yerlikaya.
