Soldier suffering mental breakdown kills three

Private Akın Buluş, one of the victims.

A soldier has shot three of his fellow soldiers to death with a rifle in the eastern Turkish province of Ağrı, after suffering a mental breakdown.

A Turkish soldier shot dead three of his fellow soldiers while on duty on Feb. 26, in the southeastern province of Ağrı. 

The Doğubeyazıt battalion infantry sergeant, only identified by his initials A.B.G., ran amok with his rifle and shot special infantry sergeant Uğur Gülmez, infantry sergeant Muhammet Can, and private Akın Buluş.

Funerals for the three dead soldiers were held in Ağrı’s Doğubeyazıt district.

The Doğubeyazıt chief public prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation into the incident.

Death rates in military barracks have increased significantly in recent years, forcing the military is taking measures to prevent accidents or other deadly incidents.

Defense Minister İsmet Yılmaz recently said the Turkish military has launched a program to investigate suspicious cases among its soldiers. The military is taking measures to prevent accidents or other deadly incidents, as it offers preemptive services, particularly for personnel marked as problematic, he said.

A sum of 983 soldiers committed suicide between 2002 and the first quarter of 2013, according to official figures by the minister.  Separate figures by the ministry show that 166 soldiers died between Jan. 2, 2012, and July 15, 2013, with 108 of them committing suicide.