Court should demand Dink murder docs from military: Turkish intelligenceOctober 18, 2014 - 17:37 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey’s national intelligence agency (MİT) has referred a court to the country’s top military body to learn whether intelligence documents related to the Hrant Dink murder were classified as a state secret, Hurriyet Daily News reported. Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was shot dead by then-17-year-old Ogün Samast in front of his Istanbul office on Jan. 19, 2007. Samast, who was sentenced to over 22 years in jail for the murder, is also on trial for being a member of a terrorist organization, as the alleged network behind the crime is yet to be revealed. The latest trial session was held at the Istanbul 2nd Heavy Penal Court for Children on Oct. 17. The jailed Samast was not present in the courtroom and was represented by his lawyer. The court had earlier twice asked the MİT about the “top-secret” and “secret” documents that the spy agency had sent to Parliament’s Coup Research Commission. The MİT did not give a clear answer whether the documents constitute a state secret, only stressing that they included “claims.” The MİT answered the question more directly in the Oct. 17 session. “It would be appropriate to ask the General Staff whether the requested information was state secrets or not,” it said. The Dink family’s lawyer, meanwhile, said the documents should be released. “The documents that the MİT sent to Parliament should be given to us too,” lawyer Hakan Bakırcıoğlu said. Top stories Six total incidents have burned 19 old-growth trees. Friday night 8 trees were torched along the beautiful main entrance. The EU does not intend to conduct military exercises with Armenia, Lead Spokesperson for EU Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano says. Hikmet Hajiyev has said that there is no place for USAID operation in Azerbaijan any longer. A telephone conversation between Putin and Pashinyan before the CSTO summit is not planned, Peskov says. Partner news | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. Freedom House concerned by mounting reports of police violence in Armenia Freedom House urged Armenian authorities to investigate this pattern of excessive force and inhumane treatment. CSTO recognizes Armenia’s sovereign right to withdraw Tasmagambetov has said that if Armenia decides to leave the organization, “it will be the sovereign right of Armenia.” |