DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY - MARCH 21: Kurdish men flash v-signs as they hold up a flag with a picture of the jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan during Newroz celebrations, on March 21, 2015 in Diyarbakir, Turkey. Thousands of Kurds gather for the Newroz spring festival in Diyarbakir in southeast Turkey under tight security after months of fighting between security forces and Kurdish separatists, and a series of bombings in Istanbul and Ankara. (Photo by Ulas Tosun/Getty Images)
Terror groups in Turkey
01:07 - Source: CNN

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Three officers also killed in raid in Gaziantep, Turkey, Turkish media report says

Gaziantep was the site of a deadly bombing on wedding celebration in August

Istanbul CNN  — 

Mehmet Kadir Cabel, the regional leader for ISIS in Gaziantep, Turkey, was killed Sunday when police raided his cell house, state-run Anadolu Agency reported, citing police and the regional governor.

Three police officers were also killed during the operation. Cabel’s wife and two children were captured, along with at least 19 other suspected ISIS members.

Gaziantep is about 95 kilometers (60 miles) north of the war-torn Syrian city of Aleppo. It was the site of a horrific bombing in August that killed 54 people at a wedding celebration. ISIS claimed responsibility.

The blast disproportionately killed women and children, with it timed to detonate during a part of the festivities when those groups painted themselves with henna, authorities said.

In May, two police officers died in an explosion at a police station in Gaziantep.

Violence has occurred with frequency this year in Turkey, with much of the bloodshed connected to ISIS.

In the one of the most brazen attacks, suspected ISIS suicide bombers killed 44 people at Istanbul Ataturk Airport in July.

A protester holds up a Turkish flag as others raise their hands during a demonstration in Taksim square in Istanbul on June 8, 2013. Thousands of angry Turks took to the streets on June 8 to join mass anti-government protests, defying Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's call to end the worst civil unrest of his decade-long rule. Erdogan, meanwhile, was meeting in Istanbul with top officials of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) to discuss the crisis, and a deputy prime minister was due to make a speech later on June 8. AFP PHOTO/BULENT KILIC (Photo credit should read BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images)
Turkey: A country in turmoil
01:09 - Source: CNN

CNN’s Isil Sariyuce reported from Istanbul, and Hande Atay Alam from Atlanta, while Ralph Ellis wrote from Atlanta.