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Turkish authorities say they have arrested suspected IS member planning New Year’s attacks

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish authorities said Friday that they have apprehended a suspected member of the extremist Islamic State group who was planning attacks on New Year’s celebrations.

State-run Anadolu Agency reported that Ibrahim Burtakucin was captured in a joint operation carried out by police and the National Intelligence Agency in the southeastern city of Malatya.

Security officials told Anadolu that Burtakucin was in contact with many IS sympathizers in Turkey and abroad and was also looking for an opportunity to join the ongoing fighting in conflict zones.

Authorities also seized digital materials and banned publications belonging to IS during the raid of his home.

The arrest was reported a day after Istanbul’s prosecutor’s office said Turkish authorities carried out simultaneous raids in which they detained over a hundred suspected members of the militant Islamic State group who were allegedly planning attacks against Christmas and New Year’s celebrations.

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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