Two years passed since the Ankara Train Station Bombing, which killed 102 and wounded more than 500. It was carried out by two ISIS members who blew themselves among demonstrators who came Ankara to attend a "Peace Rally".

After the initial investigation one attacker was identified as Yunus Emre Alagöz. The other couldn’t be identified but Turkish authorities said that he is a Syrian national. Alagöz was the older brother of Seyh Abdurrahman Alagöz who carried out the attack against socialist youths in Suruç which killed 34 three months before the Ankara massacre.

ALAGÖZ BROTHERS CARRIED OUT ATTACKS UNDER POLICE SURVEILLANCE

In 2013 some families in Adıyaman informed Turkish police that their children had joined ISIS. After that police took a number of people, including Alagöz brothers, under technical surveillance. In March of 2015, police recorded conversations of Alagöz brothers bidding farewell to each other. It was a signal that they were preparing for an attack. Also 22 days before the October 10 attack Turkish Security Directorate issued a report that warned against ISIS attacks.

Despite all, 102 people who were attending Peace Rally in Ankara were killed. Recently a new footage emerged how Alagöz and other attacker freely reached the spot where they carried out the attack.

QUESTION MARKS ABOUT THE INVESTIGATION

Lawyer Eylem Sarıoğlu is representing relatives of the victims in the case in which suspects who helped the attackers stand trial. The last hearings were held on September 24-25 in Ankara 4th Criminal Court.

Sarıoğlu talked to ANF about the two-year process after the attack and gave information about the trial.

She said that for about a year they couldn’t access the investigation files and when the files were released it was obvious that an effective investigation wasn’t carried out.

PUBLIC OFFICIALS’ RESPONSIBILITY IN ANKARA BOMBING

The lawyer criticized the Turkish state for limiting the investigation with ISIS members and supporters and claimed that public officials should be tried over neglect or some actively taking part in planning of the bombing.

“We have to evaluate the public officials’ and employees’ role in October 10 bombing in three separate parts: Before, the day of and after the massacre. Before the massacre conditions were provided for ISIS members to settle and organize in Antep and therefore the bombings were carried out easily.

On the day of the bombing Ankara Governorate and Security Directorate did not take measures to guarantee security for the participants of the meeting. What happened after the bombing also validates the responsibility of Turkish officials.

After the bombing Turkish police used tear gas against people who were trying to help the wounded” she said.

AMBULANCES DIDN’T HELP THE WOUNDED

Sarıoğlu also said that the ambulances waited one kilometre away from where the bombing took place and the heath personnel didn’t help people those who got wounded in twin explosions. The lawyer provided information about the GPS data of the ambulances that day and after careful evaluation of the data it was revealed that the ambulances reached the scene, central train station of Ankara, after one hour.

The public prosecutor didn’t give permission for an investigation against public and health employees who didn’t fulfil their responsibilities that day.

“The state is protecting the public officials and employees who didn’t fulfil their responsibilities that day” Sarıoğlu underlined.