Operation Mercek in 66 provinces: 715 suspects detained

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya shared the details of Operation Mercek on his X account.

Yerlikaya stated the following:

"Within the scope of Operation Mercek, organized against individuals carrying unlicensed weapons and arms smugglers in 66 provinces; 526 unlicensed pistols, 35 blank-firing pistols, 10 long-barreled rifles, and 58 unlicensed hunting rifles were seized. 715 suspects were detained.

A total of 629 weapons were seized in operations conducted over the last 3 days in 66 of our provinces, including Istanbul, Izmir, Adana, Konya, Bursa, Mersin, Gaziantep, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Malatya, Ankara, Antalya, Diyarbakir, Sakarya, Kayseri, Balikesir, Hatay, Elazig, Kocaeli, Tekirdag, Denizli, Aydin, Erzurum, Isparta, Trabzon, Edirne, Kahramanmaras, Osmaniye, Usak, Adiyaman, Aksaray, Batman, Bingol, Canakkale, Eskisehir, Kastamonu, Manisa, Mugla, Kutahya, Nevsehir, Nigde, Afyonkarahisar, Bilecik, Duzce, Erzincan, Gumushane, Karaman, Kirikkale, Kirsehir, Mardin, Mus, Sirnak, Zonguldak, Agri, Amasya, Bartin, Bayburt, Burdur, Giresun, Hakkari, Kirklareli, Rize, Siirt, Tokat, and Van, by our Provincial Gendarmerie Commands and Provincial Security Directorates. Some of the unlicensed weapons seized and suspects detained in our cities are as follows:

In Istanbul, 116 pistols and 2 long-barreled rifles were seized. 149 suspects were detained. In Izmir, 33 pistols and 1 long-barreled rifle were seized. 46 suspects were detained. In Adana, 25 pistols were seized. 38 suspects were detained. In Konya, 25 pistols were seized. 29 suspected arms smugglers were detained. In Bursa, 24 pistols were seized. 29 suspects were detained. In Mersin, 24 pistols were seized. 27 suspects were detained. In Gaziantep, 23 pistols were seized. 29 suspects were detained. In Samsun, 21 pistols were seized. 26 suspects were detained."

6??6?? İlde Ruhsatsız Silah Taşıyan Şahıslara ve Silah Kaçakçılarına Yönelik Olarak Düzenlenen MERCEK OPERASYONLARI KAPSAMINDA;
??5??2??6?? Ruhsatsız Tabanca,
??3??5?? Kurusıkı Tabanca,
??1??0?? Uzun Namlulu Tüfek,
??5??8?? Ruhsatsız Av Tüfeği Ele Geçirildi.
??7??1??5?? Şüpheli Şahıs Gözaltına… pic.twitter.com/xCql0GVmFg

— Ali Yerlikaya (@AliYerlikaya) November 7, 2023