Suspect Arrested in Gulf-Protest Bombings in Turkey

A suspected member of the terrorist group Dev-Sol has been charged with bombing the U.S. Consulate and a Turkish-American cultural institute to protest the Gulf War, police said Tuesday.

Dev-Sol claimed responsibility for killing a retired U.S. serviceman in Adana and wounding a U.S. Air Force officer in the eastern city of Izmir. It also said it was behind more than 15 bombings in Turkey to protest the war.

Police Chief Mete Altan said one of those arrested was accused of planting explosive devices outside the U.S. Consulate on Jan. 26 and at a Turkish-American cultural institution, both in Adana. The blasts caused damage but no injuries.

Adana is near a Turkish-American air base that was used by U.S. warplanes to fly bombing missions into northern Iraq.

The police identified the suspect as Cumhur Bircan and said police were seeking his accomplice.

Seventeen other alleged Dev-Sol members also were detained in police raids in this southern city, Altan said. Some of them, were charged with bombing a bank during a robbery attempt and opening fire on police. He did not say when the raids occurred.