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Turkish agents capture an IS member on the Afghan-Pakistan border

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish intelligence agents have captured a senior member of the Islamic State group in an area along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, allegedly thwarting planned suicide attacks in Turkey and elsewhere, Turkey’s state-run news agency reported Monday.

Anadolu Agency said the suspect was identified as Mehmet Goren and a member of the group’s Afghanistan-based Islamic State-Khorasan branch. He was caught in a covert operation and transferred to Turkey.

It was not clear when the operation took place or whether Afghan and Pakistani authorities were involved.

The report said the Turkish citizen allegedly rose within the organization’s ranks and was given the task of carrying out suicide bombings in Turkey, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Europe.

IS has carried out deadly attacks in Turkey, including a shooting at an Istanbul night club on Jan. 1, 2017, which killed 39 people.

Monday’s report said Goren’s capture allegedly also exposed the group’s recruitment methods and provided intelligence on its planned activities.

Beijing bans 4 New Zealand lawmakers from entering China because they visited Taiwan

By WTOP Staff
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Beijing banned four New Zealand lawmakers from traveling to China for a year and demanded they apologize because they visited Taiwan on a parliamentary trip, according to a message from the Chinese embassy conveyed via parliamentary officials and shown to The Associated Press on Thursday. China has hit lawmakers from other countries with sanctions related to contact with Taiwan before, but it's the first time for New Zealand parliamentarians, the government in Wellington said. Beijing has been increasing pressure in recent years on the democratically governed island that it claims as its own territory. Two lawmakers reached by the AP on Thursday rejected the demand for an apology, while the other two could not be immediately reached. New Zealand's government said it would express concern about the travel bans to Beijing. The elected officials visited Taipei in May, as New Zealand parliamentarians have done “for decades,” a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a statement.
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