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ANKARA, May 7 (AFP)-Istanbul police have arrested the murderers of a prominent journalist assassinated seven years ago, Turkish Interior Minister Saadettin Tantan said Sunday, according to Anatolia news agency. "Within an operation of the security forces nine high-level members of an [outlawed] organization, among them the perpetrators of Ugur Mumcu's murder themselves, were captured Friday," said Tantan in a written statement carried by Anatolia. The minister did not specify the number of people involved in Mumcu's assassination or say to which organization the nine detainees belonged. Following an initial interrogation by prosecutors in Istanbul, the nine were sent to Ankara, where Mumcu was killed in a car bomb attack in front of his home on January 24, 1993. Mumcu was a leading columnist for the left-leaning daily Cumhuriyet, and author of a number of documentary books. He was known for his investigations of Muslim groups and left-wing militants, as well as ties between the Turkish state and the mafia. Muslim groups were initially blamed for the assassination, while many believe Mumcu was the victim of armed gangs contracted by the state to eradicate political dissidents. Tantan said that Friday's operation was a part of a comprehensive hunt for perpetrators of unresolved terrorist attacks, which was inaugurated in February by a special team of police and intelligence officers. The operations were continuing across the country, he added. News of the capture of the nine men first leaked Saturday. The Turkish press drew contradictory reports on the issue Sunday, but most claimed the detainees belonged to an Islamic group linked to the Islamist regime in Iran. The all-news NTV channel said police were looking for two Iranians suspected of organizing Mumcu's murder. Turkey, predominantly Muslim, but strictly secular has long charged Iran with supporting Islamist groups in Turkey. Following the election victory of Iranian reformists in February, Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, expressed hope that "Iran will abandon efforts to export the Islamic revolution" to neighboring countries. |
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