HDP MP Kerestecioğlu inquired about the connections of ISIS member to the authorities

Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Ankara MP Filiz Kerestecioğlu has prepared interpellations to be answered by the minister of defence Hulusi Akar and minister of justice Abdulhamit Gül about the relations of the public authorities to İlhami Balı, who organised the October 10 massacre in Ankara and according to court cases is ISIS’ border emir organising border crossings at the Turkish-Syrian border.

Underlining that all over Turkey there are plenty of investigation and prosecution files about ISIS border emir İlhami Balı, the interpellation reads: “The most important of these are the files in Kilis, where border crossings are intensively undertaken. Hence, the tape recordings in the Kilis Criminal Court’s file no. 206/243 E. contain plenty of interviews that highlight how İlhami Balı organises the border crossings. Among the persons İlhami Balı has met are two civil servants of those one is a soldier and the other one is deemed to be either a soldier, policeman or an intelligence officer.”

The interpellation continues with facts from the meetings between İlhami Balı and the soldiers: “In the discussion conversational recordings of Balı and the soldiers it is seen that the soldier is addressing Balı as “my shah”, is not worried about the trafficker establishing the connection between him and Balı, told Balı that “we should not hurt each other”, that Balı noted they received an order not to act against the other party, that the soldier outlined they would not have an issue with them, but with the PKK. In another meeting it is clear that Balı is bargaining with an official about a soldier that has been abducted by ISIS and has later been burnt alive. (...)

“The meetings show that ISIS’ border crossings are happening under the supervision of the army and other state units and that they are actively assisting each other. The mentioned tape recordings are from as early as July, about three months prior to the massacre, and as late as ten days before the massacre. But in the files recordings dating after the massacre can be found, too. Thus, İlhami Balı clearly has been under technical surveillance before and after the massacre.

“Among the reasons of the Kilis Criminal Court for the ordering of wire-tapping is the immediate ceasing of border crossings. Nonetheless, these have continued while the phones were tapped and up until the massacre took place. Although meetings from 30.09.2015 and 01.10.2015 have been recorded by the police, the court order was violated and necessary steps to cease the crossings have not been taken. The assailants of the massacre that took place on October 10 in Ankara have been able to cross the border this way to reach Gaziantep. On top of that it was also known that at the time the aforementioned meetings took place there already was an arrest warrant issued against İlhami Balı. To enlighten the relations between İlhami Balı and the officials who are either soldiers, policemen or intelligence officers, the following questions need to be answered.”

The questions Kerestecioğlu demands to be answered are:

• Who is Muhammet Kasım Kurt, who uses phone number 0530 925 20 28, met with ISIS leader İlhami Balı and is addressed by him as “uncle”? In which institution does he serve?

• Why and how did Muhammet Kasım Kurt and other public officials establish contact with the ISIS border emir İlhami Balı? Who has given these officials the power and the order to do so?

• For what reason did the officials meeting with ISIS members turn a blind eye to the border crossings of ISIS members? What is meant by “you know the favour I do you” in the phone recordings? What conveniences have been provided to the “guests” by the civil servants?

• What does the public official mean by saying “we should not harm each other”? Is there a cease-fire agreement between ISIS and the state? What was the gain of this agreement and how does ISIS benefit from it?

• How have the civil servants outlining that they have aided ISIS benefited from this? What promise has ISIS made to the public officials?

• The aforementioned recordings make clear that state officials have been in permanent contact with İlhami Balı. Are there any investigations into the civil servants who are clearly meeting with and helping İlhami Balı? If not, why?

• Is there any special reason why the arrest warrants against İlhami Balı were not enforced and these officials have met with this person prior to the massacre?

• From time to time claims about İlhami Balı’s cooperation with MİT (Turkish intelligence agency – translator’s note) appear in the media. Are these claims true? Does İlhami Balı have relations to any public institution? (EVRENSEL DAILY)