US embassy cable - 03ISTANBUL1752

UNCLAS ISTANBUL 001752 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PTER, PREL, ASEC, TU, Istanbul 
SUBJECT: BOMBING UPDATE 
 
 
REF: ISTANBUL 1744 
 
 
1.(SBU) Summary: The toll from yesterday's attacks in 
Istanbul now stands at 27 dead and 450 wounded.  Among the 
dead are British Consul General Roger Short and 12 other 
Consulate employees (two British, ten Turkish).  As in the 
November 15 blasts, most victims were Turks passing by the 
vicinity of the attacks.  They included noted actor Kerem 
Yilmazer.  To date, we have no reports of American 
casualties.  The official Turkish investigation is at an 
early stage, while a large Scotland Yard contingent arrived 
in the city late last night.  Consul General joined those 
meeting British Foreign Minister Jack Straw at Istanbul 
airport on the evening of November 20, and reiterated USG 
readiness to provide whatever assistance we can to our 
British colleagues.  UK officials have accepted the offer of 
the former U.S. Consulate in Beyoglu as a base of operations 
for the Scotland Yard investigation, and Turkish officials 
have moved to close the streets around the location.  End 
Summary. 
 
 
2. (SBU) Updated casualty figures indicate that 27 people 
died in the two November 20 bombings: 17 at the British 
Consulate and 10 at the headquarters of HSBC.  The vehicle 
targeting the Consulate succeeded in crashing through the 
compound's gates, and exploded inside the compound directly 
next to the buildings along the compound wall that housed 
temporary offices for the CG, Public Affairs, and Security 
officials.  The structures were obliterated in the blast; the 
bodies of Consul General Roger Short and his secretary, Lisa 
Hallworth, were recovered hours later after tons of debris 
were removed.  The fact that the vehicle penetrated the 
perimeter seems to account for the fact that while many 
injuries occurred among those passing by on the street and in 
the shops and offices surrounding the Consulate, there were 
relatively few fatalities. 
 
 
3. (U) In Levent, at the site of the first bombing, reports 
indicate that 10 people lost their lives.  Most were 
passers-by on the street, including noted actor Kerem 
Yilmazer, who was apparently driving by the building at the 
time of the explosion.  The front of the HSBC building was 
sheered off by the blast and lower floors were largely 
gutted, but to date only two fatalities have been reported 
among those inside the building. 
 
 
4. (SBU) We are working closely with our British colleagues 
to provide assistance, particularly on the security, 
administrative, and consular fronts.  The Consul General 
joined the group greeting Foreign Secretary Straw at Istanbul 
airport and reiterated Ambassador Edelman's earlier offer to 
help in whatever way we can.  GSO worked through the night of 
November 20-21 to ready the former American Consulate 
building for immediate occupancy, and British officials 
indicate that they will use it as their command post for the 
Scotland Yard team that will conduct its own investigation of 
the bombing.  Turkish officials have already taken steps to 
seal off the streets surrounding the property. 
 
 
5. (SBU) Meanwhile, life in Istanbul has resumed some of its 
normal rhythm, albeit with an underlying sense of shock and 
horror.  Even more than last weekend's attacks, yesterday's 
explosions, which occurred on a busy thoroughfare in the 
upscale Levent business district and on a crowded corner in 
the heart of the shopping and cultural hub of Beyoglu, 
brought home to the entire city its vulnerability.  Strangers 
and neighbors alike have taken the time to express their 
condolences not just to British expatriates, but others as 
well, expressing the wish "Gecmis olsun"-- may it pass. 
Prime Minister Erdogan encapsulated the feelings of most with 
his comment yesterday that "those who bloodied this holy day 
and massacred innocent people will account for it in both 
worlds.  They will be damned until eternity." 
ARNETT