Four people have been arrested after an Islamic State terror attack threat prompted the British Embassy in Turkey's capital to close for the day.
The Foreign Office said the embassy in Ankara will be shut to the public on Friday for security reasons.
Officials at the country's interior ministry told the state-run Anadolu news agency three suspects were detained in Ankara and another in Istanbul ahead of the Eid al-Adha holiday.
The arrests came after information emerged about a possible IS attack on the German and British embassies during the holiday, but authorities say they have found no direct link between those arrested and any extremist organisations.
Both the UK and German embassies have been closed as a precaution.
Richard Moore, the British Ambassador to Turkey, wrote on Twitter that keeping the embassy closed was a "reasonable precaution" and the embassy was working "closely and cooperatively with Turkish authorities".
It is not known if those who have been arrested are still in custody.
In a post on its website about travel advice for Britons in Turkey the Foreign Office said: "The British Embassy Ankara will be closed to the public on Friday 16 September for security reasons.
"The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all travel to within 10 km of the border with Syria and to the city of Diyarbakir."
Turkey has been targeted repeatedly by both Islamist and Kurdish militants.
A suicide bomber last month killed more than 54 people - including 22 children - at a wedding in the southeastern city of Gaziantep in what was the deadliest such bombing this year.
That attack is believed to have been carried out by IS militants.
The Foreign Office said the embassy in Ankara will be shut to the public on Friday for security reasons.
Officials at the country's interior ministry told the state-run Anadolu news agency three suspects were detained in Ankara and another in Istanbul ahead of the Eid al-Adha holiday.
The arrests came after information emerged about a possible IS attack on the German and British embassies during the holiday, but authorities say they have found no direct link between those arrested and any extremist organisations.
Both the UK and German embassies have been closed as a precaution.
Richard Moore, the British Ambassador to Turkey, wrote on Twitter that keeping the embassy closed was a "reasonable precaution" and the embassy was working "closely and cooperatively with Turkish authorities".
It is not known if those who have been arrested are still in custody.
In a post on its website about travel advice for Britons in Turkey the Foreign Office said: "The British Embassy Ankara will be closed to the public on Friday 16 September for security reasons.
"The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all travel to within 10 km of the border with Syria and to the city of Diyarbakir."
Turkey has been targeted repeatedly by both Islamist and Kurdish militants.
A suicide bomber last month killed more than 54 people - including 22 children - at a wedding in the southeastern city of Gaziantep in what was the deadliest such bombing this year.
That attack is believed to have been carried out by IS militants.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment