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| Europe |
| Turkey seizes ’bomber’s cousin’ |
| 2003-12-23 |
| Who does those Beeb headlines? They've seized the 'bomber's cousin' and now they're 'working him over.' It's probably 'very painful.' Turkish police have arrested a relative of one of the suspected masterminds of last month’s Istanbul bombings. All together now; "It’s a family afair". Mehmet Kus was taken to a state security court on Tuesday, according to Anatolia news agency. Turkish papers say police seized enough explosives in his house for five lorry bombs of the kind used to attack two synagogues, a bank and the British consulate, killing 62 people. Mr Kus is reported to be a cousin of Habip Aktas, who is alleged to be one of the key planners of the attacks. Habib Aktas, Azad Ekinci and Gurcan Bac are the three reported leaders who either skipped to Iran, or are in Iraq planning attacks on US Forces. Turkish media say his arrest came after another arrested suspect, Osman Eken, made a confession to prosecutors. "Ouch, that hurt! The explosives are in Kus’s attic, now stop hitting me." Mr Kus’s arrest also reportedly led to the detention of 11 people in Istanbul and the town of Konya, including one man, Harun Ilhan, who is alleged to have links with al-Qaeda. Among the explosive materials allegedly found in Mr Kus’ house were 12 sacks of potassium nitrate fertiliser, which was used in last month’s attacks. One report said the explosives were being stored for use once the current security clampdown had been come to an end. Hiding explosives and lying low, good idea. Hiding explosives in your own house, dumb idea. A man arrested last week, Adnan Ersoz, was described by police as the link-man between a Turkish extremist cell and an international terrorist group. Which shall remain (al-Qaeda) nameless. Newspapers said he got instructions directly from al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. He now says meeting was in 2001, prior to Tora Bora. With planning of bombing taking two years, that fits. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #6 SH#5 Ever hear 'died of natural causes,' or how about 'shot while trying to escape?' |
| Posted by: Glenn (not Reynolds) 2003-12-23 6:59:54 PM |
| #5 Didn't the Turks eliminate the death penalty as part of their package to get into the EU? Can't they reinstate capital punishment temporarily and recind it at a later date. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2003-12-23 5:17:05 PM |
| #4 He's dead. |
| Posted by: Charles 2003-12-23 11:51:34 AM |
| #3 He's already in front of the court: A court charged a Turkish man with aiding terrorists Tuesday after police found enough chemical fertilizer in his home to make five truck bombs like those used in last month's Istanbul suicide bombings, news reports said. An arrested relative of Habip Aktas, a suspected leader of al-Qaida in Turkey, helped lead police to the 12 large sacks of chemical fertilizer at the home of Mehmet Kus in Istanbul, Turkish newspapers and television reported.Cables and explosives were also seized in the raid at the house, Sabah reported. The fertilizer was the same as that used to make the bombs in the four attacks, the Vatan and Sabah newspapers said. On Tuesday, a State Security Court in Istanbul that deals with terrorism cases charged Kus with aiding and abetting terrorists, the semiofficial Anatolia news agency reported. Conviction on those charges carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Kus testified that the materials were given to him by another relative, but said he did not know what they were used for, Anatolia reported. NTV and Vatan said Kus was related to Aktas. Police also detained Harun Ilhan, a suspected top member of al-Qaida in Turkey, Anatolia reported. It said he was detained in the central city of Konya. NTV television said some 20 people have been detained in Konya and Istanbul in the most recent sweep against militants. Istanbul Gov. Muammer Guler on Tuesday refused to comment on the reports, citing an ongoing investigation. He told reporters a statement would be made later. "I can say no more, at this time" |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-12-23 11:47:06 AM |
| #2 So they were planning to bomb the US air base in Turkey for two years, and only at the last moment decided that there was too much security and switched to softer targets? That seems unlikely... |
| Posted by: seafarious 2003-12-23 11:42:42 AM |
| #1 Murat? Have you admitted you were wrong about this, yet, or are you still holding out for the PKK? |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2003-12-23 11:42:32 AM |