Equipment used in Beşiktaş bombing ‘not ordinary’: Deputy PM

The explosives used in the deadly Beşiktaş terror attack “are not ordinary ammunition,” Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş said after a cabinet meeting on Dec. 12, the Hurriyet Daily News reports.

A thorough investigation to identify the source of the explosives is still being conducted, he added.

“The pothole [created by the explosion] is very wide and deep. All kinds of technical investigations are being carried out to probe this, with the slightest details taken into consideration. It is understood that the ammunition used is not ordinary,” Kurtulmuş said.

“This is not made out of material that terrorist organizations buy from supermarkets or bazaars. It is given by some people. If logistical, intelligence and weapon ammunition support is cut, none of these terrorist organizations would be able to survive for even a week. This equipment hasn’t just been obtained by chance,” he added.

A twin bomb attack in the heart of Istanbul that killed 44 on Dec. 10 was claimed by the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK), an offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

At least 37 of the victims of the attack, which targeted a police vehicle, were police officers, while seven were civilians, according to state officials.