ISTANBUL - Turkish authorities have rejected a request by Mehmet Ali Agca, the Turk who attempted to assasinate Pope John Paul II in 1981, to briefly leave jail to attend the pontiff's funeral, his lawyer said Thursday.
Mustafa Demirbag told AFP that the justice ministry had informed him verbally of the decision, and he expected to receive the formal reply later in the day.
Agca's brother, Adnan, may attend the funeral, Demirbag said.
Adnan Agca was not immediately available for comment.
Mehmet Ali Agca, 47, said in a written statement Monday that he was mourning the death of John Paul II whom he described as a "spiritual brother".
He was a 23-year-old far-right militant on the run from the Turkish police when he opened fire on the pope at St. Peter's Square in 1981 as the pontiff headed for an audience in an open vehicle.
John Paul II was seriously wounded in the abdomen and Agca spent the next 19 years in Italian prisons.
The pope visited Agca in jail and forgave him for the assassination attempt, while Agca claimed that the attack was part of a divine plan.
Many see Agca as a deranged person, while others believe he is a sly operator playing the madman.
He has given contradictory testimonies on his role in the attack, frequently changing his version and forcing investigators to open dozens of inquiries.
The suspected involvement of then communist Bulgaria and Soviet intelligence was never proven.
Upon his extradition to Turkey in 2000, Agca was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison for a bank robbery committed in the 1970s. He is also serving a life term reduced to 10 years for the 1979 murder of a prominent Turkish journalist.
04/07/2005 08:37 GMT