Turkey detains eight at Istanbul's Ataturk airport on suspicion of having Islamic State links

Turkish police have detained eight people at Istanbul’s main Ataturk airport on suspicion of having links with Islamic State, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency.

The group said they were coming from Casablanca, Morocco, late on Tuesday for a vacation in Istanbul and that they had reservations at a hotel, but police found no evidence of their booking, Anadolu reported.

The authorities in Turkey have detained more than 1,000 people on suspected links to Islamist militants since the beginning of the year, in raids that have been stepped up since Ankara declared what it described as a “synchronised war on terror” in July.

Around 300 have been formally charged.

Police also detained 41 people at Ataturk airport earlier this month after a tip-off from a fellow passenger on a flight from Morocco, 20 of whom were deported.

Citing police sources, Anadolu said the authorities found a piece of paper on one of the individuals detained late yesterday with a drawing that outlined a plan of how to get to Germany by bus, boat and train.

The fight against the radical jihadists has taken on a new intensity sincethe Paris attacks last week.