Istanbul bombers' lawyer supports holy war
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Oluşturulma Tarihi: Aralık 21, 2005 09:24
A lawyer representing suspects in the Istanbul bombings of 2003, said on Tuesday that Muslims have a right to wage a holy war, and defended these rights in his closing argument before an Istanbul court on Tuesday. Osman Karahan, the lawyer who represents at least twelve suspects in the case posed the question, "Is it possible to judge people who have nothing to do with the facts of the case just because they praise holy war?"
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He even went onto to say that the war was an obligation in Islam. "If we open this door, tomorrow we will be judging those who fast or those who pray," said Karahan.
Karahan also brought up the invasion of Muslim countries such as Bosnia, Iraq and Palestine, to a panel of secular judges. "After Damascus, it will be Istanbul`s turn, with the same massacres as in Bosnia," said Karahan.
Seventy-one people are charged with the attacks, of which 29 are in jail. The public prosecutor has called for life imprisonment for four of the accused and jail terms of 22 years for 36 others. He recommended that 31 others be acquitted.