Four major members of the “Islamic State” (IS, aka ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) terrorist organization have been detained in Turkey, YeniSafak newspaper reported Sept. 5.

All the detainees are citizens of Turkey, according to the newspaper.

It is also reported that the detained militants said they were planning to commit criminal acts in southeastern provinces of Turkey.

The newspaper wrote that all the detainees had previous convictions.

The Turkish police periodically conduct operations in the country against the IS.

Earlier, the Turkish media reported that IS militants use the Turkish Gaziantep province on the border with Syria as a stronghold.

The country’s media also reported that the IS-related educational facilities operate in Turkey.