Soldiers bid farewell in Ankara

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

Deputy PM Beşir Atalay (L) joins the funeral of two soldiers in Ankara. DAILY NEWS photo

The remains of 24 soldiers killed in a blast at an ammunition depot in the western province of Afyonkarahisar on Sept. 5 were sent to their homes following a ceremony at the Gülhane Military Medical Academy (GATA) on Sept. 16.

25 soldiers were killed in the blast, but forensic reports conducted on one body had been completed and it had been identified earlier, so the man was already laid to rest in his hometown of Nevşehir on Sept. 7.

Funerals

The remains were carried by ambulances and military funeral vehicles to Etimesgut Military Airport and sent to their homes by plane. The press was not permitted in the airport.

Some of the funerals were held in the soldiers’ hometowns yesterday, while some will be held today.

Military prosecutors announced Sept. 14 that there was no sign of sabotage in the Sept. 5 blast.“No evidence suggesting that the blast occurred due to terror or sabotage could be found,” the Eskişehir Military Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement Sept. 14. k HDN