Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Sept 21 2012
Monument honoring Turkish diplomat opens in Ottawa
ISTANBUL
A monument honoring Turkish Military Attach?é Col. Atilla Alt?Ä?±kat, who
was slain by the Armenian militant group ASALA in 1982, was opened
yesterday by the Turkish and Canadian foreign ministers, daily
H?ürriyet reported.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davuto?Ä?lu said the monument stood in
memory of all victims of terrorist acts who were killed while on duty,
calling it “a monument condemning terrorism.”
Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird also spoke during the ceremony.
“Both Canada and Turkey have lost very worthy diplomats through
meaningless acts of violence,” Baird said.
The monument is a six-meter-wide and three-meter-deep semi-spherical
structure comprised of steel and wooden elements that took six months
to design and another six months to manufacture. All parts were flown
in from Turkey under the sponsorship of Turkish Airlines in July.
Alt?Ä?±kat was assassinated by ASALA in Ottawa in 1982 while he was
waiting at a red light. Ten shots were fired at him. He died on the
scene.
Active from 1975 to 1991, ASALA claimed responsibility for about 200
attacks on Turkish diplomatic and non-diplomatic institutions and
murdered 58 Turkish and non-Turkish people, 34 of whom were Turkish
diplomats. ASALA was listed as a terrorist organization by the United
States until the 1980s, but was taken off the list when the group
disbanded.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
