|
Turkey bomb suspects âtook orders from al-Zawahiriâ
Two key suspects in the Istanbul suicide bombings, in which 61 people died, took instructions from Osama bin Ladenâs right-hand man, newspapers reported today. Hurriyet newspaper said main suspects Habib Aktas and Azad Ekinci met with bin Ladenâs top surviving lieutenant, Ayman al-Zawahiri, several times. The two Turks are suspected of hatching the plans for the suicide bombings on November 15 against two synagogues and on the British Consulate and a British bank five days later. âThey were the only ones to meet with Al-Zawahiri,â Hurriyet quoted one suspect, identified as Yusuf Polat, as telling police during questioning. âThe instructions came from him. They would meet (with him) at least three times a year, using false identity documents.âMet him at a safe house in Iran, perhaps? The reports came a day after Deputy Prime Minister Abdullatif Sener told reporters following a Cabinet meeting that âthose who were involved in these terrorist attacks as suicide bombers, and those who had relations with them ⊠are linked to the al-Qaida terrorist organisationâ. Canât get much higher a link than al-Zawahiri unless you have a ouija board. At least three claims of responsibility for the bombings purportedly came from al-Qaida. The government had been hesitant to name al-Qaida and Senerâs statement was the first time the government directly linked the attacks to bin Ladenâs network. Al-Zawahiri, an Egyptian doctor, is believed to be bin Ladenâs chief deputy.The man identified as Polat was captured while trying to travel into Iran and charged over the weekend with a crime equivalent to treason. Trying to follow his leaders? Newspapers have said he confessed to belonging to a small al-Qaida cell in Turkey. Police said he surveyed the site for one of the synagogue bombings and gave the go-ahead for the attack. The manâs arrest was the most prominent to date in the investigation into the attacks. Order a extra case of truncheons. Police believe that Aktas, Ekinci and four other suspected ringleaders of a Turkish cell linked to al-Qaida, fled abroad just before the attacks, Cumhuriyet newspaper reported. The big shots always do. Posted by: Steve 2003-12-02 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=22091 |