Weapons Analysis: Female Militants Attack Tece Police House in Mersin, Turkey
At around 22:40 on September 26, a rare and underreported attack took place with two armed female militants launching an assault on the Tece Police House in Mersin (Mezitli area), Turkey. As a result of the firefight, the two militants and a police officer were killed, while another police officer was injured and taken to hospital.
After the shooters were taken down, suspicious materials were found in the area and were detonated by security forces in a controlled manner. It was also reported that a male suspect allegedly involved in the attack was detained shortly after the clash.
Initially, various sources in Turkey claimed that one of the female militants was "Dilşah Ercan" (nicknamed "Zozan Tola”), a Mersin native who joined the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in 2013.
However, on September 29, the PKK's armed branch HPG officially took responsibility and released the identities of the perpetrators.
HPG clarified that “Dilşah Ercan” was not involved in the attack and that she is still actively fighting in the ranks of the PKK. HPG Member "Dilşah Ercan" also posted a video on October 3, denying the Turkish authorities' allegation.
HPG also critiqued the statements of Turkish officials as inaccurate intelligence.
A few hours after the attack, a video of the incident, taken from security cameras, was released and posted online. (Click the Tweet below to watch the video)
In the video, a female militant in a white t-shirt (who claimed to be ‘Dilşah Ercan’) is seen calmly approaching the booth at the entrance of the police station and firing a pistol at close range.
The model and caliber of the gun are hard to make out in the video, but the weapon likely chambered 9x19mm or .32 ACP (7.65x17mmSR).
Other weapons used by the militants are also not entirely intelligible due to the angles and poor quality of the video. However, there are some parts of the video that offer clues about the weapons used.
The militant in a white t-shirt initiates the attack from close range with a pistol and then switches to shooting with a weapon that looks like a rifle.
The model of the gun cannot be clearly identified, but, it seems to be a shortened AK-type assault rifle, and the gun has a folding stock.
This militant is shot dead by the police officer shortly after she fires her second gun.
At the same time, a second militant in a black t-shirt opens fire on the police. The weapon used by this perpetrator is a little more obvious and looks like a 7.62x39mm AK rifle. The gun has a foregrip and possibly a folding stock as well.
At first glance, the weapon resembles the Hungarian AMD-65 assault rifle given its features.
However, the muzzle device of the gun in the video does not seem to be exactly the same. Also, the foregrip of the gun in the video appears to be attached perpendicularly (not angled) to the handguards.
It is also worth noting that the inclination of the magazine is similar to the 40-round RPK magazine. It is possible that the RPK magazine was purposely selected, instead of the standard 30-round magazine, as it carries more rounds. But the AMD-65 and magazine cannot be definitively identified due to the low quality of the videos.