ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Three policemen and six militants were killed in an operation against suspected Islamic State (ISIS) cells in northwestern Turkey’s Yalova province, the interior minister said on Monday.  

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said that Turkish police and security forces carried out a raid at a property in Yalova early Monday, during which “ISIS terrorists opened fire on our heroic police officers” and killed three policemen. 

Eight police officers and one security guard were also wounded in the clashes, which also left six ISIS members dead. 

As part of the same operation, Turkish forces arrested 137 suspects, and judicial control measures were applied to 97 of them before Monday’s clashes, Yerlikaya said.

Ankara has ramped up operations against suspected ISIS militants this year, as fears mount over the resurgence of the group.

Last week, Turkish police arrested 15 suspected ISIS members over fears of attacks on Christmas and New Year celebrations across the country.

ISIS controlled large swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria following its rise in 2014. The group was declared territorially defeated in 2019. Despite being devoid of territorial control, jihadist remnants remain active in hit-and-run operations, posing serious danger to security in the areas they previously controlled.