AKCAKALE, Turkey - Turkish authorities said they had seized thousands of guns in a warehouse by the Syrian border, and a local news agency said the weapons had been destined for Turkey's wartorn neighbor.
The firearms - including more than 5,000 shotguns and rifles, starting pistols, gunstocks and 10,000 cartridges - were discovered during a raid in a village on the edge of the Turkish town of Akcakale and displayed to journalists on Friday.
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if(window.location.pathname.indexOf("/jpost-tech/")!=-1){ document.getElementsByClassName("divConnatix")[0].style.display ="none"; var script = document.createElement('script'); script.src = 'https://static.vidazoo.com/basev/vwpt.js'; script.setAttribute('data-widget-id','616dd69d1b04080004ac2cc0'); document.getElementsByClassName('divVidazoo')[0].appendChild(script); }else if(window.location.pathname.indexOf("/israel-news/") != -1 || window.location.pathname.indexOf("/omg/") != -1 || window.location.pathname.indexOf("/food-recipes/") != -1 || window.location.pathname.indexOf("/science/") != -1){ document.getElementsByClassName("divConnatix")[0].style.display ="none"; var script = document.createElement('script'); script.src = 'https://static.vidazoo.com/basev/vwpt.js'; script.setAttribute('data-widget-id','60fd6becf6393400049e6535'); document.getElementsByClassName('divVidazoo')[0].appendChild(script); }else if(window.location.pathname.indexOf("/health-and-wellness/") != -1){ document.getElementsByClassName("divConnatix")[0].style.display ="none"; var script = document.createElement('script'); script.src = 'https://player.anyclip.com/anyclip-widget/lre-widget/prod/v1/src/lre.js'; script.setAttribute('pubname','jpostcom'); script.setAttribute('widgetname','0011r00001lcD1i_12246'); document.getElementsByClassName('divAnyClip')[0].appendChild(script);}else if(window.location.pathname.indexOf("/breaking-news/") != -1){document.getElementsByClassName("divConnatix")[0].style.display ="none";var script = document.createElement('script'); script.src = 'https://player.anyclip.com/anyclip-widget/lre-widget/prod/v1/src/lre.js'; script.setAttribute('pubname','jpostcom'); script.setAttribute('widgetname','0011r00001lcD1i_12258'); document.getElementsByClassName('divAnyClip')[0].appendChild(script);}The Dogan News Agency said the weapons were being stored on the edge of the border town, awaiting delivery to Syria, and that the 35-year-old depot owner had been detained.
It quoted police sources as saying the firearms had a market value of around 3 million lira ($1.7 million).
Turkey is a staunch supporter of the uprising against Syrian President Bashar Assad, now in its third year, and has harbored Syrian refugees and rebels crossing over the two countries' porous 900-km (550-mile) border.
But it has ruled out arming rebel fighters, fearing it could be drawn into a destabilizing regional conflict.
Turkey has a number of firearms manufacturers and the starting pistols found in the warehouse could easily be converted to fire live ammunition.
