Thursday, September 08, 2005

Bloomberg.com: Turkish Bride's Death Sparks Drive to End Gunshot Celebrations

"Turkish Bride's Death Sparks Drive to End Gunshot Celebrations

Sept. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Begum Kartal, a 23-year-old Istanbul university student, was to be married Sept. 1. Three days before the ceremony, she was killed by a bullet fired into the air by revelers at a pre-wedding party.

``Somebody should end this terror!'' her father, Hasan Kartal, pleaded in a front-page story in the Istanbul daily Sabah. His words have sparked a nationwide campaign by activists and politicians who are urging Turks to stop firing guns to celebrate weddings and sporting triumphs, a practice that kills more than 500 people a year in Turkey."

More:Bloomberg.com: Turkish Bride's Death Sparks Drive to End Gunshot Celebrations