Istanbul church reopens after deadly attack as 25 arrested

ISTANBUL

Twenty-five people, including two gunmen, have been arrested following the Jan. 28 church attack in Istanbul, with the church reopening for worship with a well-attended service.

Two masked assailants carried out an armed attack at the Santa Maria Church in the Sarıyer district during the Sunday service, killing Tuncer Murat Cihan. Hours after the incident, the ISIL terror group claimed the attack and made a statement on its Telegram channels that read that the attack was in response to the so-called leader's call to kill Jews and Christians everywhere.

In the aftermath of the assault, the religious authorities in the church on Feb. 1 conducted a "purification ritual to seek forgiveness from God for the violation of the church's sanctity, pray for the soul of the deceased Cihan and reconsecrate the church, church officials said.

The ceremony was presided over by the Vatican's Ambassador to Ankara Monsignor Marek Solczynski and Monsignor Massimiliano Palinuro, the bishop of the Latin Catholic Community in Istanbul.

Prior to the ceremony, police forces implanted intense security measures around the church.

A dedicated area inside the church featuring photographs of Cihan was also established to honor the 52-year-old victim.

"On Sunday, a great sin was committed against both humanity and God. The killing of our late brother Tuncer is a crime committed against God. Every murder is an affront to the sacred. It is blasphemy against the source of life, God. And this murder took place in a sacred place. The sanctity of this church has been violated. From that moment on, the church became a victim," Palinuro stated.

Hours after the church ceremony, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç announced that a court in Istanbul ordered the arrest of 25 suspects, with nine released under judicial control.

He also mentioned that 26 individuals with ties to ISIL, previously detained, were sent to the deportation center.

Meanwhile, during the court proceedings, new details emerged about the attack, revealing that the suspects conducted reconnaissance at the church a day before the incident in a different vehicle.

A court report noted that ISIL-affiliated gunmen Amirjon Kholikov and David Tanduev left their residences in Başakşehir one day before the attack and arrived at the crime scene in a foreign-plated vehicle. They discreetly parked the car away from the church, using black masks to avoid recognition.

The report also stated that other suspects who moved alongside Tanduev and Kholikov left Istanbul on Jan. 5, traveled to the central province of Kayseri, and later returned to Istanbul.

One suspect was found to have engaged in training ISIL members in Istanbul to send weapons to the United States in July 2023, attempting to establish an instructional facility on a farm and actively seeking firearms. This suspect reportedly provided reports to Adam Khamirzaev, a so-called leader within ISIL, seeking approval for conducting operations in Türkiye.