Turkish Suspect Says Attacked US Embassy in Ankara Over Trump’s Rhetoric

A suspect who opened fire at the U.S. embassy in Ankara on Monday admitted in his testimony that the collapse of the Turkish lira against the U.S. dollar, as well as the U.S. President Donald Trump’s rhetoric against Turkey, made him attack the mission.

“I called Osman that night and we met. We drank and drove around. We talked about the dollar crisis, about the U.S. threats against Turkey and about the recent statements of the U.S. President. Then we got angry and decided to shoot at the U.S. embassy under the influence of alcohol,” Ahmet Celikten said in his police testimony, the Hurriyet daily reported on Wednesday.

Celikten, 39, and 38-year-old Osman Gundas were detained after six shots were fired from their vehicles at the entrance of the embassy on August 20. The shots hit the door of the embassy but caused no casualties.

The two suspects had previously been convicted of crimes.

Security sources could not confirm that the suspects were controlled by the third person.

The attack came after the ties between Turkey and the U.S. got strained over American priest Andrew Brunson. After the Turkish court ruled to put Brunson under house arrest, following a two-year-long imprisonment, Trump ordered to impose sanctions against Turkey, which paved the way to more serious economic problems.