Turkey confirms Reyhanli bombings suspect killed in Syria

ANKARA

The suspected mastermind of the 2013 Reyhanli bombings in Turkey’s southern Hatay province was killed in Syria, Turkish security sources confirmed Friday.

Mihrac Ural was killed in a Tuesday night attack by opposition fighters on a Syrian regime base in Latakia province along the Syrian-Turkish border, the sources said.

Ural was buried the following day in Latakia’s Qardaha district, his wife’s hometown, they added.

Ural’s death was initially reported by the opposition Ahrar al-Sham group.

Group spokesman Abu Yusuf al-Muhajir told Anadolu Agency on Wednesday that Ural was killed in an attack by the group in Latakia.

He said the group’s fighters had shelled regime forces after spotting "suspicious activities" in northern Latakia’s Nabi Yunus area.

According to the spokesman, a number of Russian officers were also killed in the attack.

Ural was the leader of the so-called "Popular Front for the Liberation of Iskenderun", a pro-regime militia that is accused of killing more than 50 people in western Syria in 2013.

The May 2013 Reyhanli bombings had left more than 50 people dead.