Video Claims Militant Turk Killed in Iraq
Television networks Friday broadcast a video from militants that said U.S. airstrikes in Iraq had killed the suspected leader of a Turkish Al Qaeda cell blamed for suicide bombings in Istanbul.
The video showed a body of a bearded man said to be Habib Akdas.
A man was heard in the video saying that Akdas was killed in a bombing raid this week in Iraq’s Al Anbar province.
It was not possible to immediately verify the authenticity of the video.
Akdas is suspected of leading the Al Qaeda cell that carried out suicide attacks in November against two synagogues, a London-based bank and the British consulate, bombings that killed more than 60 people.
Turkish authorities have said Akdas is believed to have fled to Iraq around the time of the attacks.
The videotape was broadcast on CNN-Turk and NTV.
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