BBC New, UK
Jan 20 2007

Dink suspect’s picture released

Police believe the man is tucking a gun into his trousers
The Turkish authorities have released CCTV images of a man suspected
of involvement in the death of a prominent journalist of Armenian
descent.
In one image the young man can be seen running while tucking what
officials believe is a gun into his belt.

Hrant Dink was shot dead near his newspaper’s Istanbul offices on
Friday, sparking angry protests.

He had written extensively about the massacre of Armenians during the
final days of the Ottoman Empire in 1915.

The photographs released by Istanbul’s governor Muammer Guler came
from a security camera on the street where Mr Dink died after being
shot twice.

Because he didn’t request protection, he didn’t get close
protection. Only general security precautions were taken

Muammer Guler, Istanbul governor

Obituary: Hrant Dink
Turkish press outrage

The images have been enhanced by investigators in order to help with
identification, officials said, and the police have set up a phone
line for members of the public to pass on information.

The suspect appears to be in his late teens or early 20s. Of slim
build, he is casually dressed in jeans, a denim jacket and white
knitted hat and has a thin moustache.

In one image he is seen walking normally, in another he is running,
with his hands near his waist – officials believe he is hiding a gun.

Threats

Many in Turkey think that Dink was targeted for his controversial
writing on the killings of hundreds of thousands of Armenians by the
Ottoman Turks nine decades ago.

The issue is a sensitive subject in both Armenia and Turkey. Many
Armenians have campaigned for the killings to be recognised
internationally as genocide.

Turkey denies any genocide, saying the deaths were a part of World
War I.

Hrant Dink was one of Turkey’s most prominent Armenian voices
Dink was found guilty in October 2005 of insulting Turkish identity
after he wrote an article which addressed the mass killings.

Dink was one of Turkey’s most prominent Armenian voices and despite
threats on his life, he refused to stay silent.

Even with the known tensions surrounding Dink’s work he was not
provided with a bodyguard, sparking criticism that not enough had
been done by the authorities to protect him.

But Mr Guler says that this was because Dink had not asked for any
extra security effort.

"Because he didn’t request protection, he didn’t get close
protection," Mr Guler said. "Only general security precautions were
taken."

Journalists and politicians in Turkey have expressed outrage at the
killing, which many described as a political assassination, while the
US, EU, France, and several human rights groups also voiced shock and
condemnation.

EU question

The Armenian government has condemned the murder with President
Robert Kocharian saying: "The killing of this well-known Armenian
journalist in Turkey raises numerous questions and deserves the
strongest condemnation.

"We hope that the Turkish authorities will do everything possible to
find and punish the culprit strictly in accordance with the law".

The speaker of Armenia’s parliament, Tigran Torosyan went even
further.

"Following the murder, Turkey should not even dream about joining the
European Union," the Armenian news agency Arminfo quoted him as
saying.

The two countries still have no official relations since Armenia
gained independence after the break up of the Soviet Union in 1991.