Four ex-prosecutors and an ex-superior officer were arrested and are being held in Turkey, accused of espionage.

On the 19th January 2015, ex-prosecutor Suleyman Bagriyanik (photo), and his ex-assistants Ozcan Sisman, Aziz Takci and Ahmet Karaca, attempted to stop a convoy of covered trucks suspected of containing weapons destined for the Isamic Emirate. However, ex-police colonel Ozkan Cokay was prevented from doing so by the men in charge of the convoy, all of them members of the MIT (the secret service).

17 soldiers who were participating in the transfer are still in prison.

The prosecutors and the colonel have been relieved of their functions by President Erdoğan.

This affair, which created much comment at the time, is no longer being treated by the Turkish press due to a discretionary decision by military censors.

Treating his interrogation with disdain, prosecutor Sisman pointed out that he had not been informed of the reason why he had been accused of espionage. He confirmed that legal action had been taken against him solely because he had refused to obey the minister who had ordered him to ignore the convoy. He went on to state that it is a crime to arrest prosecutors and an officer in this way, and those who committed such a crime should answer for it.

Turkey refuses to admit that it has supported or continues to support the Islamic Emirate.

Translation
Pete Kimberley