Turkey’s missing weapons
ANKARA, Turkey — The 2017 annual report of the Turkish Interior Ministry, released in late February, raised fresh questions about a controversy ongoing since the failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016. According to the report, 2,198,774 individuals lost their vehicle registrations, gun licenses, driver’s licenses and professional IDs last year, while 106,740 guns were recorded as either lost or stolen.
News of the huge number of missing weapons comes amid concerns over the reported proliferation of unlicensed guns, including through online sales, and has reignited debate on weapons that were reported missing from military and police armories in the wake of the coup attempt..
There are no clues as to where the more than 106,000 missing weapons might be. Of note, the available statistics only include guns reported as lost or stolen to authorities, meaning that the actual figure might be higher.
In a written parliamentary question in June, CHP Deputy Eren Erdem had asked Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu for the number of weapons that had been missing from the police inventory since the night of the coup attempt. He is still waiting for an answer.
The Association of Retired Noncommissioned Officers has underlined that all assigned weapons and ammunition, and even flasks and boots, are the responsibility of individual soldiers and officers in the Turkish army. Many personnel are now anxious because some of the weapons used during the night of the coup attempt are still missing, according to the head of the association.
Few seem to be convinced by official statements on the missing guns cited in the Interior Ministry reports, as contradicting statements have deepened the confusion, and many questions remain unanswered. Turkish society is already sharply polarized, and many believe that government supporters are arming themselves for future action against political opponents. Open threats from Islamist quarters are feeding the apprehension.
Last month, a presenter on the Islamist Akit TV said on air that the staff of the daily Cumhuriyet, a vocal government critic, deserved to be “slaughtered.” Another Akit TV presenter, infuriated by claims of civilian casualties in Turkish military operations in northern Syria, said, “If we were to kill civilians, we would have started in Cihangir, Nisantasi and Etiler,” referring to Istanbul neighborhoods considered bastions of secularism. He added, “There are so many traitors. There is the Turkish Grand National Assembly,” referring to opposition lawmakers in parliament. Prosecutors have launched an investigation into the presenter.
While the “Islamic State” (IS) has lost most of its cities in Iraq and Syria, thousands of Yazidis it kidnapped are still missing. Activists say some are being hidden within IS families. Judit Neurink reports from Irbil.
In total 216 soldiers, including nine generals, are still at large and wanted by authorities for more than three weeks after the failed coup attempt in Turkey, announced Monday the spokesman of the government, Numan Kurtulmus.
Turkey’s navy is still unable to account for 14 ships, while two helicopters with 25 special forces troops are also missing since an unsuccessful coup plot against the government. However, Deputy PM Numan Kurtulmus has denied any naval vessels are unaccounted for.
At least 42 helicopters have gone missing from Turkey’s military inventory in the wake of the failed coup attempt on Friday evening causing concern that there may be another act to the attempted overthrow of Erdogan.
The Foundation “Tashir” of “Tashir” group owned by billionaire Russian Armenian Samvel Garabedian has 500,000 dollars available to families of the dead soldiers Armenians in Karabakh.
