Pope gunman 'not fit for military service'

A Turkish military hospital today said the Turkish man who shot Pope John Paul II in 1981 was not fit for obligatory military service, his lawyer said.

Mehmet Ali Agca was freed from prison last Thursday.

The military hospital’s decision ended days of speculation about whether the 48-year-old gunman, a draft-dodger, would have to serve in the army after spending some 25 years in prison in Italy and Turkey.

Agca, who disappeared after his release, resurfaced today and reported to a military hospital in Istanbul.

Agca had not been seen in public since his release and failed to report to a police station over the weekend as required until the military decided on his draft status.

A panel of military doctors who examined him ruled today that he was not fit to be enlisted in the army, his lawyer, Mustafa Demirbag, told reporters at his Istanbul office, the Anatolia news agency reported.

However, Agca still faced the threat of returning to his cell amid questions over whether he served enough time for killing a prominent Turkish journalist.

It was not clear why Agca was found unfit for military service and his lawyer did not elaborate.

Agca reportedly was complaining about some inflammation in his hands and feet.

There were also questions about his mental health. Agca has been known for frequent outbursts and claims that he was the Messiah.

Agca was declared a draft-dodger in 1980. He escaped from a military prison in 1979 where he was serving time for killing Turkish journalist Abdi Ipekci.

Meanwhile, judicial authorities today reviewed his release from prison, which outraged many Turks.

He served about 25 years in prisons in Italy and Turkey for the assassination attempt on the Pope and the killing of Ipekci.

Justice Minister Cemil Cicek ordered a review within hours of Agca’s release to see whether there were any legal flaws. Cicek later suggested that Agca could be returned to his cell to serve at least 11 more months.

Cicek said he would make an announcement about the case later today.

He has said he would send the case, after evaluations by his staff, to an appeals court for a final say. Agca will remain free until the court reviews the case.

Local judicial authorities set him free based their ruling on a calculation that he spent a full 20 years in prison in Italy.

However, Agca spent 19 years and one month in prison in Italy between the day he was captured after he shot the Pope on May 13, 1981, in St. Peter’s Square in Rome, and his extradition to Turkey on June 14, 2000.

He served the last five and a half years in Turkey for murdering the Turkish journalist in 1979.