A Turkish State security court on Wednesday began hearing a case against six Turks for their alleged involvement in the November 2002 assassination attempt on Turkmenistan's President Saparmurat Niyazov, according to Anatolia news agency.
The prosecution is demanding life imprisonment for each of the defendants on charges of attempting to kill the leader of a foreign state.
The defendants, who were extradited to Turkey in March, rejected the charges and claimed they had been tortured in Turkmenistan to confess, the report said.
"We went to Turkmenistan for work, but were arrested for having a part in the assassination attempt and were tortured for four months," one of the defendants, Mehmet Ihsan Yilmaz, was quoted by the news agency as telling the court.
The trial was adjourned to a later date on procedural grounds. (Albawaba.com)
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