ISTANBUL – Dozens of people have gone on trial in Istanbul accused of being part of the Islamic State group's Turkish network.
Some of the 67 defendants were detained after a July suicide bombing near the Syria border that killed more than 30 people and which authorities have blamed on IS. But around 40 of the defendants are believed to be in Syria and are being tried in absentia.
Prosecutors are demanding a maximum 15-year prison term for the group's alleged leader, Ilyas Aydin, on charges of forming and leading a terror organization. Aydin, also tried in absentia, is believed to have recruited militants.
Other defendants face up to 10 years in prison for membership in a terror group.
The trial opened Tuesday with court officials reading from the 315-page indictment.
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