US Instructors Trained Perpetrator of Terrorist Attack in Istanbul: Newspaper
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Ahlam Albashir, who carried out a terrorist attack on Istanbul's Istiklal Street on November 13, had been trained by US instructors, the Yeni Safak newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing the police investigating the incident.
According to the newspaper, a Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), banned in Turkey, ordered the attack, TASS reported.
The terrorist was detained ten hours after she fled from Istiklal Street, where she had left a bag with an explosive device on a bench.
The newspaper noted that the Istanbul police used all its technical capabilities to search for the terrorist. They managed to track her down using 1,200 surveillance cameras.
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu announced on Monday the arrest of Albashir and 45 other people who may be involved in the attack.
According to the Istanbul General Directorate of Security, the attack was carried out by Albashir, who was sent months ago from the Syrian city of Kobani and is affiliated with the PKK. When questioned, she confessed to the crime.
The bomb attack on Istanbul’s Istiklal Street on November 13 left six people killed and over 80 others wounded. The investigative team believes that the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) banned in Turkey and its Syrian branch called the People’s Defense Units are complicit in the terror blast.