Turkey detains 2 suspected ISIS members planning New Years attack, official says

The state-run Anadolu news agency, quoting unnamed police and judiciary officials, said the would-be attackers were planning to detonate explosives at two locations near bars and a shopping mall near Ankara’s central Kizilay district during celebrations.

A spokesman for the police terrorism division in Ankara declined to comment.

A double suicide bombing blamed on ISIS killed more than 100 people in Ankara in October, and Turkey has since stepped up its efforts to tackle the militants.

Earlier this year, Turkey agreed to take a more active role in the US-led battle against ISIL.

In Bangladesh’s capital, the U.S. Embassy said Tuesday it was warning U.S. citizens that attacks against hotels and clubs are possible in Dhaka in the next few days, perhaps in connection with New Year’s Eve celebrations.

It has also moved to tighten security along its 900km border with Syria in a bid to stem the flow of fighters and resources.

The report goes on to say the suspects caught the attention of Turkish authorities by moving “frequently” between Turkey and Syria.

Mayeur told RTBF French-language television that past year, 100,000 people turned out.

“We’ll have a huge number of police out on New Year’s Eve, including a lot of our new anti-terror force, the Critical Response Command”, he said.

The men are members of a Muslim biker gang called the Kamikaze Riders and are suspected to have discussed attacking Brussels’ Grand Place square and other places where crowds gather, as well as police and military facilities, a senior Belgian counterterrorism official told CNN on condition of anonymity.

Four other people have been questioned in the case but released, Belgian authorities said without providing details. Armed security patrols could be seen in major sites in the capital and elsewhere, and popular nightlife spots have boosted security with systematic bag checks.

In the USA, officials in Las Vegas are urging New Year’s Eve revelers to leave bags, backpacks and strollers at home as officials ready for hundreds of thousands of partiers to flood the area around casinos.

The officials said the threat was uncorroborated and was based on a single source, and it didn’t mention specific locations in the cities. Dhaka police increased security measures for New Year’s Eve, including a ban on outdoor parties after 8 p.m., the embassy said.

Information for this article was contributed by Suzan Fraser, John-Thor Dahlburg, Sylvie Corbet and staff members of The Associated Press and by Brian Murphy of The Washington Post.