GAZIANTEP, Turkey (Reuters) - As U.S.-led coalition jets from a Turkish air base began to pound Islamic State targets in Syria in the summer of 2015, Ilhami Bali passed on what appeared to be an order from the militant group's leadership in Raqqa: unleash war on Turkey.
Bali, identified by Turkish prosecutors as the most senior Islamic State figure in Turkey, asked a fellow militant in the border city of Gaziantep to draw up a list of potential targets. Cash, suicide bombers and equipment would be sent from Syria, he said.