The Turkish man who was killed by two Daesh terrorists during Sunday mass at a church in Istanbul had gone into the building while out for a stroll, his cousin said Monday.
Authorities said the masked gunmen entered the building and shot dead a 52-year-old Turkish citizen, Tuncer Murat Cihan, at the Italian Santa Maria Catholic Church in the Sarıyer district.
The attackers, one from Tajikistan and another from Russia, have been detained, along with 51 others after the shooting.
According to authorities, the attack could have been deadlier if not for a jammed weapon.
Murat Cihan, the victim's cousin, said his relative had no political or religious connections and lived "in his own world."
"He got out for a walk and went to the church and this unfortunate thing happened to him there," he told reporters at his cousin's funeral.
Sarıyer's district mayor, Şükrü Genç, was cited by local media as saying two shots were fired by the perpetrators before one of their guns jammed, adding it was not clear whether the attackers planned to kill more people.
CCTV footage verified by Reuters shows the two gunmen waiting briefly in an entrance hall at the church before following a man inside. Another angle shows the attackers shooting the man walking ahead of them.
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu said the Polish consul general was also inside the church with his family during the attack. On Sunday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called the Polish diplomat and the church's priest to offer his condolences.
Daesh claimed the attack in a statement on Telegram, saying it was in response to calls by its leaders to target Jews and Christians.
Tuncer, the victim, was Alevi, a religious minority whose beliefs draw on Shiite Muslim, Sufi and Anatolian folk traditions and a funeral was held for him at a cemevi, the Alevi place of worship.
Still reeling from the attack, the clergy of Santa Maria opened their doors to the press on Monday, saying Mass will resume on Thursday. Pews and walls were peppered with bullet holes. A bouquet was left where Cihan was killed.
Footage from inside the church on Monday showed bullet holes on the side of a pew, as well as another in a wall. Candles were lit inside, with the building surrounded by police.
Turkish police found the balaclavas the gunmen wore at the apartment they were staying in the far-flung Başakşehir district, but the weapons used in the shooting were missing, local media said Tuesday.
It also said the two suspects drove a car brought from Poland to Istanbul a year ago, which had been not used until the day of the shooting.
Of the 51 suspects detained in ensuing operations, 23 were handed over to the deportation centers for lack of a connection with the incident.
Police continue probing the links of detained suspects with Daesh.
Daesh remains the second biggest threat of terrorism for Türkiye, which faces security risks from multiple terrorist groups. In 2013, Türkiye became one of the first countries to declare Daesh a terrorist group. The country has since been attacked by the terrorist group multiple times, with over 300 people killed and hundreds more injured in at least 10 suicide bombings, seven bomb attacks and four armed attacks.
In late December, Turkish security forces detained 32 suspected Daesh militants that Anadolu Agency (AA) reported were allegedly planning attacks on synagogues, churches and the Iraqi Embassy. A week earlier, police rounded up 304 suspected Daesh terrorists in simultaneous raids across Türkiye in what appeared to be a security sweep leading up to the New Year's festivities.
