VZCZCXRO4336
OO RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHIT #0042 0221227
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 221227Z JAN 07
FM AMCONSUL ISTANBUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6526
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS ISTANBUL 000042 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV TU
SUBJECT: SITREP 2.  DINK ASSAILANT ARRESTED; HIGH LEVEL 
REPRESENTATION AT FUNERAL TUESDAY, JANUARY 23 
 
REF: A. ISTANBUL 038 
     ¶B. ANKARA 112 
 
¶1.  (U) In the aftermath of the January 19 murder in Istanbul 
of Agos weekly editor and founder Hrant Dink, his suspected 
assailant, 17-year old Ogun Samast, was arrested by Turkish 
National Police Saturday evening as he stepped off a bus in 
Samsun en route to his home in Trabzon after his father 
reportedly recognized his picture on television and notified 
police.  Half a dozen others possibly linked with the killer 
were also arrested in Trabzon. 
 
¶2.  (U) Memorial and funeral services will be held on 
Tuesday, January 23, where attendance is expected to be high. 
 Ceremonies will begin at 11 a.m. local time in front of the 
Agos newspaper office in the Osmanbey district of Istanbul 
(where Dink was murdered.)  Following a short Memorial 
Service organized by the newspaper, a hearse will carry the 
casket to Taksim Square.  Mourners may follow on foot.  From 
there, the hearse will drive at a quickened pace to the 
Armenian Patriarchate for the funeral service to be held in 
the Virgin Mary Church of Kumpkapi.  Mourners will continue 
their march to the patriarchate arriving in time for the 
service to begin at 2 p.m.  The service itself will be led by 
Armenian Patriarch His Beatitude Mesrob II Mutafian, followed 
by interment at Balikli Cemetery near the patriarchate. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Foreign Minister Gul will lead Turkey's official 
delegation.  (PM Erdogan has a prior event with Italian PM 
Prodi; President Sezer will be with Polish President 
Kaczynski.)  Several dignitaries from the Armenian Diaspora 
have been invited and are expected to attend, including 
Archbishop Khajag Barsamian from the American Diocese of the 
Armenian Church in New York.  Reportedly, FM Gul has invited 
Armenian government officials to attend; Embassy Ankara is 
following up with MFA.  The Ecumenical Patriarchate's 
Chancellor Metropolitan Theoliptos of Iconium, leaders of the 
Jewish Community and others will attend from other minority 
communities.  The Ambassador and Consulate staff will attend, 
as will British, German, French and Canadian Ambassadors are 
also expected to attend. 
 
¶4.  (U) The Prime Minister directed that other prominent 
intellectuals connected with Article 301 ("insulting 
Turkishness") charges be given protection.  We understand 
that the GOT has now assigned bodyguards to approximately 20 
prominent personalities, including Elif Shafak, who was 
acquitted in September 2006 and Orhan Pamuk, whose case was 
dropped on procedural grounds. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Turks nationwide continue to express shock, sorrow 
and shame over the assissination.  In addition to the 
politicians' statements (ref b), newspaper columnists have 
paid tribute to Dink's achievements and speculated on 
possible motives for the murder.  Human rights groups, 
journalist and publishers' associations and the general 
public have staged marches and vigils across the country. 
Many Turks see the tragedy as, at the same time, an opening 
for progress in Turkish-Armenian relations.  "Milliyet" 
columnist Can Dundar, for example, expressed hope that the 
killing could lead to the opening both of the 
Turkish-Armenian border and of formal diplomatic relations. 
The president of the Human Rights Association told us he 
believes the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and 
opposition Republic People's Party (CHP) will begin to 
ratchet back their nationalist rhetoric and that there will 
be a renewed discussion on freedom of expression.  There were 
signals from AKP's weekend party retreat that both may be in 
the offing.  Tomorrow's funeral - who attends and its 
aftermath - will be key. 
JONES