Life sentences sought for Daesh's airport attackers


The Istanbul public prosecutor yesterday sought aggravated life sentences for six Daesh suspects in a case concerning an attack on Istanbul's Atatürk Airport in 2016 that left 46 dead and over 200 injured.

A total of 46 suspects, including 36 in custody and six out on bail, were tried in Istanbul 13th panel court. Four are still at large. The aggravated life sentences were sought for six suspects in custody: Rıza Coşkun, Levent Uysal, Ahmet Kaplan, Eyüp Demir, Ahmet Dizlek and Algerian national Djamel Slimani. The prosecutor also sought prison sentences ranging between seven and 15 years for 15 suspected members of the terrorist group and asked for the acquittal of the remaining 21 due to lack of evidence.

The Daesh-linked bomb-and-gun attack on the Istanbul airport took place on June 28, 2016. The three attackers died when they blew themselves up after a shootout with police officers trying to stop them. More than 200 people were injured.

At least 319 people have lost their lives in Daesh terror attacks in Turkey, where the terrorist group has targeted civilians in suicide bomb, rocket and gun attacks.