Court jails three for life over bombing of German tourists

A TURKISH court sentenced three people to multiple life sentences on Wednesday in connection with a bombing that killed 12 German tourists in İstanbul two years ago.

A suicide bomber, Saudi-born Syrian Nabil Fadli, killed the tourists when he blew himself up in Sultanahmet, İstanbul’s historic heart, on January 12, 2016. Turkish authorities blamed Islamic State for the attack.

Two Syrians, Atala el-Hasan el-Mayyup and Fevzi Muhammed Ali, and a Turkish man, Halil Derviş, were found guilty of aiding murder, trying to overthrow the government and constitution, membership of a terrorist organisation and committing crimes in the name of an armed terrorist organisation.

They were each given 12 aggravated life sentences, 12 terms of 16 years and 16 eightyear terms for the injuries caused. They were also given nine years for transporting explosives from Syria, for a total of 329 years each on top of the multiple life sentences.

A lawyer for two of the convicted, Atanur Demir, said the investigation into the case was not thorough and that he would challenge the verdict. Another defendant received a six-year sentence for membership in a terrorist organisation. Unlike the others, he was released pending appeal. Eighteen defendants were found not guilty and four others remain at large.