Turkish police arrested a man carrying explosives outside a subway station in the largest city of Istanbul on Monday, thwarting a possible suicide bomb attack, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported.

 

Istanbul Governor Muammer Guler said that it was certain that the man, who was detained earlier in the day in Istanbul with explosives, was planning to carry out an attack.

 

The 25-year-old detainee, who did not have a criminal record, might be a member of a terrorist organization, said Guler, noting that the man was trying to flee abroad when he was arrested.

 

However, the intended target was not definitely known yet, said Guler, adding that another suspect was arrested after the interrogation of the first detainee.

 

"The two detained men are now being questioned at the Anti- Terror Department in Istanbul," said Guler.

 

Earlier on Monday, Turkish police arrested the man carrying 3.5 kg of A-4 explosives outside a subway station in the district of Sisli, one of the most crowded areas in Istanbul.

 

The police also found a fake ID card and dozens of steel marbles in his back pack. In the following search of the detainee's house, which was located in Yenibosna district of Istanbul, the police found more explosives and blast mechanisms.

 

More operations were carried out in different areas of the city and several more individuals had been detained.

 

(Xinhua News Agency December 25, 2007)