Türkiye intelligence agency captures senior ISIS operative, brings him to country

Türkiye's National Intelligence Organization, or MIT, captured a suspected senior operative of the ISIS (Daesh) terrorist group and brought him to Türkiye, security sources said Wednesday.

The operation targeted the media wing of ISIS-Khorasan, known as ISIS-K, the Afghanistan-based branch of the terrorist organization, according to the sources.

The suspect, identified as Ahmet Kazanci and known by the aliases "Abu Ubeyde" and "Abu Ibrahim," was detained during the operation. Security sources said Kazanci took over as the group's so-called media chief for Türkiye after the capture of his predecessor, Ozgur Altun, known as "Abu Yasir Al Turki."

MIT determined that Kazanci traveled from Türkiye to the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, joined the ISIS-K and played an active role in the group's camps, the sources said.

Investigators found that he worked alongside Altun in facilitating the movement of recruits from Türkiye to the Afghanistan-Pakistan region and later assumed responsibility for the organization's activities following Altun's arrest.

According to the sources, intelligence gathered by MIT indicated that Kazanci survived airstrikes targeting ISIS militants in Pakistan and later planned to re-enter Türkiye illegally to continue operating on behalf of the group.

He was subsequently captured in an operation near the border, the sources said.

During questioning, Kazanci admitted his association with Altun, described the military and ideological training he received within the organization and acknowledged carrying out media and propaganda activities for the group, according to the sources.

Security sources said the operation disrupted alleged ISIS plans targeting Türkiye and exposed networks used to transfer recruits to the organization.