Turkey continues with crackdown on illegal gambling

Turkey continues to carry out widespread operations against illegal gambling operations with the country enacting another far-reaching operation dubbed "SİBERAĞ-13."

Turkey intensifies crackdown on illegal gambling

Law enforcement conducted raids across 16 provinces and arrested 27 individuals, including social media influencers who have been tied with advertising gambling products.

The news was also confirmed by Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya who took to X, previously Twitter, to outline the size and sophistication of the operation and what has led to the arrests.

The current result is the effort of the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Offices and the General Directorate of Security’s Cybercrime Department, which have been working for months now to act against sprawling illegal gambling operations.

The present operation comes after four months of investigating individuals, authorities said, and specifically focused on digital channels of communication and promotion of illegal gambling.

Yerlikaya said that illegal gambling is a threat to society and the very future of people who engage in it, necessitating a firm response from the government and law enforcement.

The minister assured that Turkey’s law enforcement will continue to work round-the-clock to make sure that illegal gambling operations are dismantled, and those responsible for running them in the first place, brought to justice.

Earlier in December, authorities conducted operations across 54 provinces in the country, resulting in the arrests of 319 individuals suspected or directly involved in running or aiding illegal gambling operations.

Image credit: Unsplash.com