BISHKEK -- Kyrgyz authorities say they have detained nine people suspected of being members of an unidentified international terrorist organization.
The State Committee for National Security (UKMK) said on November 2 that five of the suspects detained in the northern Chui region are foreigners and four are Kyrgyz citizens.
According to the statement, the suspects were involved in recruiting fighters for "terrorist groups" in Syria and Afghanistan since 2017 and planned a series of terrorist attacks in Kyrgyzstan.
The statement also says an investigation is under way and Kazakh authorities are cooperating with foreign security services.
Kyrgyz authorities have said that up to 500 Kyrgyz citizens have joined the Islamic State group and other extremist organizations in Syria and Iraq in recent years.