US warns citizens of ‘credible threats’ in Turkey

It comes after a shock warning was issued by the U.S. embassy in Turkey today warning Britons that Istanbul and the Antalya province are particularly at risk of a potential terror attack.

The Israeli bureau issued a statement saying, “Following a situational assessment, we are reiterating and sharpening the high level of threat in Turkey”.

The DFA website lists the attacks that have happened in recent months and advises that “the threat from terrorism in Turkey remains high”.

In what it called an “emergency message”, the embassy warned Westerners to exercise extreme caution.

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member Turkey was a key regional ally of Israel until the two cut ties in 2010 over the deadly storming by Israeli commandos of a Turkish aid ship bound for the Gaza Strip, which left 10 Turkish activists dead.

There also a stepped-up security presence in the city as it prepares to host Muslim leaders from around the world for the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit next week.

“Information on what intelligence officials are describing as an “imminent” attack was obtained from six operatives from the “Caliphate” who were arrested in the southern city of Gaziantep over the last week”. “This is an active plot”, the source added.

The explosion came hours after the United States warned its citizens about “credible threats” to tourist areas in Turkey, especially around public squares and docks in Istanbul and the Mediterranean beach resort of Antalya.

It urged the citizens to be extremely cautious if they are in the vicinity of such areas and to monitor local media.