13 February 2010 / SINAN GÜL, AYDIN HIZLICA , KONYA
Gendarmes have launched excavations to search for munitions in an area near Beyşehir Lake in the central province of Konya on the orders of the İstanbul Public Prosecutor’s Office, which was tipped off about underground weapons caches in the area.
Excavations were launched on Thursday after a letter was sent to the İstanbul Public Prosecutor’s Office stating that explosives and guns are buried in three locations near Beyşehir Lake. No munitions were found on the first day of the search, which is being carried out under the supervision of the Beyşehir chief public prosecutor. The digs were suspended on Thursday night and resumed yesterday. Two locations were searched on Thursday, and gendarmes searched the third location yesterday.Officials did not make any statement about whether the excavations were being carried out as part of an investigation into a clandestine terrorist organization known as Ergenekon.
Many arms caches filled with weapons and explosives have been uncovered as part of the Ergenekon investigation. The probe has resulted in the discovery of large caches of weapons including light anti-tank weapons (LAWs), hand grenades, rifles and ammunition buried underground, hidden underwater or just abandoned along the roadside in various Turkish cities.
