Rocket heads seized in Turkey's Adana were bound for Syria, says governor

ADANA / ANKARA

A cargo truck full of rocket heads, bazookas, missiles, bombs and guns was seized Nov 7 in Adana. DHA photo

Rocket heads seized near in the southern province of Adana on Nov. 7 were bound for Syria, Adana Gov. Hüseyin Avni Coş said Nov. 8, claiming that the operation proves Turkey is not supporting radical groups in Syria.

Authorities seized nearly 1,000 rocket heads after searching a truck in Adana, while the governor said 10 people had been detained in the raid, during which 935 rocket heads and 10 launching pads were also seized.

“This operation has clearly demonstrated that Turkey does not support radical groups in Syria,” Coş said, adding that the rocket heads were produced in the Central Anatolian province of Konya and Adana. When asked where the warheads were headed, he said: “Turkey’s south … Syria.”

The governor did not further comment on the issue and said technical studies had been carried out by security forces and that the internal and external links of the incident had also been investigated.

Defense Minister İsmet Yılmaz also commented on the issue and said an investigation was still underway and that the prosecutor’s office and his ministry would make necessary statements.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said radical groups in Syria were not the reasons but the results of conflict in the country. The foreign minister reiterated that Turkey has not supported al-Qaeda in Syria but supported the reorganization of a “moderate opposition.”

“It is not surprising to see radical groups in a country which turned into a quagmire with 7 million displaced people and 2 million refugees,” he said in a televised interview on Nov. 8. “The regime made the country turn into such a quagmire, while the international community remained silent on Syria.”