Özgür Altun: Turkish Media Mastermind for ISKP Arrested in Pakistan

Ozgur Altun (Abu Yasir al-Turki), a key operative of the Islamic State Khurasan Province (hereafter, IS-Khurasan), was apprehended on June 1, 2025, at an undisclosed location in Balochistan, near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. His arrest came as a result of a joint operation conducted by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Turkiye’s intelligence organization, Milli İstihbarat Teşkilatı (MİT) (Anadolu Agency, June 1). As one of the highest-ranking Turkish nationals in IS-Khurasan, Altun, known by various pseudonyms such as ‘Hasan Han’ and ‘Muhammet Han’, held a central position in the group’s propaganda and logistics apparatus playing a critical role in recruitment and movement of militants and supplies across Europe and Central Asian conflict zones, including Afghanistan and Pakistan. (Daily Sabah, June 05).

On July 8, 2025, Altun’s wife and partner in crime, Ayse Altun, was also detained in Pakistan and subsequently extradited to Turkiye. She is accused of facilitating financial transactions via cryptocurrency to support jihadist activities, particularly aiding the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS or IS central), linked women and families in conflict zones (Cumhuriyet, July 8, 2025). Turkish authorities have confirmed that both Altun and his wife were integral to IS-Khurasan’s media and financial operations, handling digital outreach and funding flows that were critical to the group’s transnational capabilities.

Read Complete Profile: Animesh Roul, Özgür Altun: Turkish Media Mastermind for IS–KP Arrested, Militant Leadership Monitor, (Subscription), October 9, 2025.