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Eight suspects accused of spying for the Israeli intelligence service Mossad were detained in a joint operation by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and Istanbul police, authorities said Friday.
The suspects were gathering information on Mossad targets including individuals and companies, in Türkiye and sending reports to the Israeli agency, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on X.
Two were arrested while six were released under judicial control.
Türkiye has recently ramped up targeting alleged Mossad members inside the country.
Ankara fears Mossad is recruiting operatives on Turkish territory to target foreign nationals, with media reports saying certain Hamas members are in the country. Türkiye maintains links with the Hamas movement and rejects classifying Hamas as terrorists, unlike European countries and the United States.
In February, including private detectives, were arrested on similar suspicions. And in early January, 34 people were also detained by Turkish police on suspicion of spying for Israel. The suspects arrested in January have been accused of planning to carry out activities that included reconnaissance and “pursuing, assaulting and kidnapping” foreign nationals living in Türkiye.
At the time, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç said most of the suspects were charged with committing “political or military espionage” on behalf of Israeli intelligence.
Mossad is said to have recruited Palestinians and Syrian nationals in Türkiye as part of an operation against foreigners living in Türkiye.
Following the Jan. 2 arrests, AA cited a prosecution document as saying the operation targeted “Palestinian nationals and their families … within the scope of the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”
Türkiye and Israel resumed frozen relations last year after years of tensions, due to Israel’s acts of aggression targeting Palestinians. Yet, ties deteriorated again after Oct.7, the start of the new round of the Palestine-Israel conflict. Ankara is one of the strongest critics of Israel’s military actions in Gaza.
The head of Israel’s domestic Shin Bet security agency said in December that his organization was prepared to target Hamas anywhere, including in Lebanon, Türkiye and Qatar.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan warned Israel of “serious consequences” if Israel pressed ahead with its threat to attack Hamas officials on Turkish soil.
In December 2022, MIT detained 68 suspects in an operation targeting private detectives and technical operatives working for Mossad.
