Forty-five people have been detained by Turkish police on suspicion of links to al-Qaeda and planning attacks.

Local media reported that the suspects were rounded up in simultaneous operations in eight districts of Istanbul on Tuesday and were being questioned by police.

A court is to decide whether they should be charged, jailed and wait for a trial or released.

In January, police raided 18 locations in southeast Turkey on so-called "intelligence" that fighters linked to al-Qaeda were planning car bomb attacks.

Four alleged fighters and a policeman were then killed in a gunfight, and 17 suspects were arrested.

Previous arrests

Al-Qaeda was also blamed for truck bombs that targeted two synagogues in Istanbul on November 15, 2003, as well as the British consulate and a British bank five days later.

The attacks killed at least 63 people, and injured hundreds.

Last year, seven men were jailed for life over the bombings, one of them a Syrian national who was convicted of financing the attacks.

PHOTO CAPTION

File photo showing the aftermath of Istanbul bombings in 2003.

Al-Jazeera