Pope shot by Armenian gunman

[Reincarnated Am]

The Australian newspaper, "Canberra Times", has published a story about the shooting of Pope John Paul II

Pope shot by Armenian gunman

Canberra Times - Australasia; Aug 04, 2005


HE HAD just driven slowly through a cheering crowd of more than 20,000 people in St Peter's Square in Rome.

But on May 13, 1981, at 5.21pm, as Pope John Paul was about to step down from his open-topped vehicle - jokingly called the Popemobile - the repeated crack of gunfire rang out.

The Pope collapsed, bleeding profusely from gunshot wounds to his stomach.

Six shots were fired by 23-year- old Armenian gunman Mehmet Ali Agca from a Browning 9mm pistol. After his arrest, police discovered a letter in which he said he planned to kill the Pope ''to demonstrate to the world the imperialistic crimes of the Soviet Union and the United States''. Two American women were also wounded in the attack. The 60-year-old Pope was hit by four bullets - two lodging in the lower intestine, causing extensive internal wounds.

Moments before the shooting, the Pope had been holding a baby in his arms and had just given the infant back to its parents.

The assassination attempt was described by Italian police as ''the first act of terrorism against the Vatican'', and raised serious questions about security and protection of the Pope. The Italian press argued that the pontiff was protected by 95 ceremonial Swiss guards, armed only with medieval pikes. Doctors performed almost six hours of complex abdominal surgery.

The Pope also received emergency transfusions of 3.4litres of blood.

Hundreds of people gathered outside the Gemelli Hospital near the Vatican, praying and waiting for news of his recovery. Were you there? Share your memories, via e-mail with [email protected]


And here's what some People said about it:

Ali Agca's Turkish Identity
Hagop Nalbandian
Friday, 5 August 2005

Dear Editor,

In your aticle entitle4d "Pope shot by Armenian Gunman" you have made the error of offending the public with a gross error that goes beyond description. Ali Agca, a muslim of Turkish origin, is certainly not a Christian Armenian. A simple search on the Internet will reveal Ali Agca's Turkish identity. Please tell your journalists to avoid such errors that only serve to embarass your establishment.

Regards,

Hagop Nalbandian
Burbank, CA, USA

http://canberra.yourguide.com.au/detailops.asp?class=your+say&opinion_id=100761

Pope Shot by Armenian Gunman
Dikran J. Abrahamian BA, MD
Friday, 5 August 2005

During the past few years I've made to trips to Australia and I have very fond memories of people, culture and your country overall. Too bad, that's all shattered now. I could not imagine how irresponsible your editorial board could be. How could you publish something before checking the facts. Shame on you.

http://canberra.yourguide.com.au/detailops.asp?class=your+say&opinion_id=100754

Pope shot by ? gunman
Ben Sul
Friday, 5 August 2005

Regarding your article "Pope shot by Armenian gunman"
Canberra Times - Australasia; Aug 04, 2005

It's imperative for a publication such as yours to check their facts before publishing a story with such an obvious error. The gunman, Mehmet Ali Agca has no affiliation with Armenians -- he's a Turk, born and raised in Turkey with no known Armenian ancestry.

It's true that there's a connection between Turks and Armenians; the Genocide of 1915 was perpetuated by Turks, and over 1.5 million Armenians were massacred. This has no correlation to your article, but it's still important to keep in mind who generally are the killers and who are the innocent victims.

Best regards,

Ben Sul

http://canberra.yourguide.com.au/detailops.asp?class=your+say&opinion_id=100750

Have your say
Mihran Keheyian
Friday, 5 August 2005

Rosslyn Beeby has no idea about her facts,in her latest article, Pope shot by Armenian gunman,in fact he was Turkish Born - January 9, 1958 Birthplace - Yesiltepe, Turkey.
Your paper owes an apology for the error you have printed.

http://canberra.yourguide.com.au/detailops.asp?class=your+say&opinion_id=100739

Ignorent correspondent
Katia Peltekian
Friday, 5 August 2005

Dear Editor:
Please make sure your correspondents and writers get their facts straight before publishing a story and asking the readers to share their memeories. The article in question is "Pope shot by Armenian gunman" by Rosslyn Beeby (Aug 4). For your and your reader's information Mehmet Ali Agca is a Turk and a Moslem. He was born in Yesiltepe, Turkey in 1958. He is not an Armenian, he was not born in Armenia, and thankfully has no Armenian blood running through him. Please correct this disgraceful error by your ignorent correspondent.

http://canberra.yourguide.com.au/detailops.asp?class=your+say&opinion_id=100738

If you like to say something about this:

http://canberra.yourguide.com.au/addopinion.asp?class=your%20say

[email protected]

And I am sure you will..!!!!

[Tongue]

This happened in 1981 and the gunman was Turkish. How can they make such a big mistake!!! I sent my comment. But why was it published yesterday? This is nearly 25 years old.

[imported_anoush]

This happened in 1981 and the gunman was Turkish. How can they make such a big mistake!!! I sent my comment. But why was it published yesterday? This is nearly 25 years old.

I bet it was NO mistake. Who controls the media?

Who are the worst enemies of Armenians???

Who has an interest in making Armenians look bad besides the turks??

[imported_Hellektor]

Rosslyn Beeby, The Stupidest Person in the Universe

The stupidest person in the whole universe could not imagine an Armenian being called Mehmet Ali!!!
With all the terrorism stories and all that it's impossible to believe one can be SO ignorant to THINK for a second that an Armenian can be called Mehmet Ali.
It's SO sad that a person as stupid as this Rosslyn Beeby can actually have a job and earn money when people MILLIONS of times more intelligent than this retard are jobless and poor.
This alone proves that there's no justice in this world.

[Reincarnated Am]

I think Turkey had cough out large amount of money to kind of politicians and news media agencies that have no morals or conscious, and they can be bought by anyone, kind of people that will bend over even to Osama Ben Laden if offered the right amount of money.

[Reincarnated Am]

And that is why all of the sudden all the tables had turned upside down and we are hearing bad news or lies all over the world about Armenians.

And I think this is just the beginning.

[cosmos]

I have never heard that Mehmet Ali Agca is an Armenian. He was a member of (Turkish) Nationalist Movement Party. What's it got to do with it, an Armenian was in connection with such party? Nonsense.

[imported_Armenian]

This situation can be explained, I think.

Back when Mehmet Ali Akca was first arrested in 1981, he claimed to be an Armenian. I believe he did this to throw-off the arresting authorites. However, later it was revealed that he indeed was a Turk. Nonetheless, some news papers back then did reported his claim of Armenian decent.

I think that a young news reporter, albeit not a very smart one, was doing some archival research and came across those newspaper articles claiming that the assasin of the Pope was an Armenian.

Thus, this mess.

Then again, I could be wrong.

[Gavur]

Report: Man Who Shot Pope to Be Freed

By SELCAN HACAOGLU

Associated Press


ANKARA, Turkey - A court has approved the release from prison the man who shot Pope John Paul II in 1981, saying he completed his sentence for crimes he committed in Turkey, the semiofficial Anatolia news agency reported Sunday.

Mehmet Ali Agca was extradited to Turkey in 2000 after serving almost 20 years in Italy for shooting and wounding the pope in St. Peter's Square in Rome. His motive for the attack remains unclear.
Agca, 47, was expected to be released as early as Monday. Anatolia said he was expected to be immediately enlisted by the military for obligatory service because he had dodged the draft, Anatolia said. Turkish paramilitary police were expected to take Agca first to a local military station and then to a military hospital in Istanbul for medical check, a routine procedure.

His lawyer and family said they were not aware of the court decision.



"I'm surprised," his lawyer, Dogan Yildirim, told The Associated Press by telephone. "If its true, justice will finally be served. He has been in prison for so long."

Agca's sister, Fatma Agca, also was surprised.

"We did not hear it," Fatma Agca told the AP from the family home in the southeastern city of Malatya.

Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the Vatican would defer to the judgement of the Turkish tribunal.

"The Holy See has learned only from news agencies of the news of the possible freedom of Ali Agca," he said in a brief statement. "The Holy See, before a problem of a judicial nature, submits to the decisions of the tribunals involved in this matter."

Upon his return to Turkey from Italy, Agca immediately was sent to prison to serve a 10-year sentence for murdering Turkish journalist Abdi Ipekci in 1979. He was separately sentenced to seven years and four months for two robberies in Turkey the same year.

An Istanbul court ruled in 2004 that Agca should only serve the longest sentence _ his conviction for killing Ipekci. That 10-year sentence was changed twice because of new Turkish laws.

Yildirim had pressed for Agca's early release in 2004, calculating that he could be released as early as December 2005 the under new laws. The court did not respond.

Agca served less than six months in Turkish prison in 1979 for killing Ipekci before he escaped, resurfacing in 1981 in Rome.

Given that earlier time served, the prison asked a court for permission to release Agca. The court ruled that Agca could now be freed this week, Anatolia said.

Agca reportedly identified with the Gray Wolves, a far right-wing militant group that fought street battles against leftists in the 1970s. He first confessed to killing Ipekci, one of the country's most prominent left-wing newspaper columnists, but later retracted his statements.

A service of the Associated Press(AP)

[Hovik]

Pope Gunman May Be Tried for Draft-Dodging

Pope Gunman May Be Tried for Draft-Dodging
By SELCAN HACAOGLU, Associated Press Writer
25 minutes ago



The Turk who shot Pope John Paul II in 1981 will be released from prison Thursday, but he then may be tried in a military court for allegedly dodging the draft and escaping military custody, an official said Monday.

A Turkish court decided last week to free Mehmet Ali Agca, 47, on parole, saying he had completed his prison term for crimes committed in Turkey. Agca was extradited to Turkey in 2000 after serving almost 20 years in an Italian prison for shooting and wounding John Paul in St. Peter's Square in Rome on May 13, 1981.

His motive for shooting the pope in the abdomen remains unclear.

Agca's lawyer told The Associated Press on Monday that his client was looking forward to his impending release.

"He is very, very happy," Mustafa Demirbag said. "He has no plans for the future for now, but he is looking forward to his freedom."

Demirbag said Agca likely would be taken to a military station following his release and then to a military hospital in Istanbul for medical checks, a routine procedure.

However, it was not clear if he will be enlisted in the army, which generally accepts conscripts until 41.

But an official said Agca might even be taken to a military court for dodging the draft and escaping from a military prison in 1979. The official spoke on condition of anonymity Monday because he was not authorized to speak to the press.

In Warsaw, Poland, John Paul II's former private secretary, who held the wounded pope in his arms after he was shot in 1981, accepted the court's decision to release Agca and was praying for him, his spokesman said.

"John Paul II pardoned Ali Agca a long time ago," Krakow Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz told the AP through his spokesman, the Rev. Robert Necek. "The decision to release him belongs to the justice system in Ankara.

"Now John Paul II is praying for him in heaven and I am praying also," Necek quoted Dziwisz, who served as John Paul's closest aide for more than 40 years until the pontiff's death in April, as saying.

Dziwisz also has "forgiven him in his heart," Necek said.

John Paul II met with Agca in Italy's Rebibbia prison in 1983 and forgave him for the shooting.

Demirbag said he was touched by the Vatican statement.

"On behalf of my client I want to thank the Vatican. We were pleased by the statement," he said.

On Sunday, Demirbag said he had known about the court's decision, but was keeping it a secret.

Demirbag, explaining the court decision, said Agca was sentenced to life in prison, which amounts to 36 years under Turkish law, for murdering Turkish journalist Abdi Ipekci in 1979.

Agca reportedly sympathized with the Gray Wolves, a far right-wing militant group that fought street battles against leftists in the 1970s. He initially confessed to killing Ipekci, one of the country's most prominent left-wing newspaper columnists, but later retracted his statements.

Agca served less than six months in a Turkish prison in 1979 for killing Ipekci before he escaped, resurfacing in 1981 in Rome. A 1991 amnesty deducted 10 more years from his time, leaving some 25 1/2 years to be served, he said.

The court last week further deducted his 20 years in prison in Italy based on a new article in the penal code, which was amended by the Turkish government recently at the request of the European Union to raise the standard of human rights.

That left Agca to serve a sentence of just more than 5 1/2 years. That sentence ends Thursday, Demirbag said.

___

Associated Press reporters Monika Scislowska in Warsaw, Poland, and Suzan Fraser in Ankara contributed to this report.