{"id":107648,"date":"2014-05-16T18:39:36","date_gmt":"2014-05-16T15:39:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/?p=107648"},"modified":"2014-05-16T18:39:36","modified_gmt":"2014-05-16T15:39:36","slug":"image-of-pms-aide-kicking-protester-stokes-anger-over-turkey-mine-fire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/2014\/05\/16\/image-of-pms-aide-kicking-protester-stokes-anger-over-turkey-mine-fire\/","title":{"rendered":"Image of PM&#8217;s aide kicking protester stokes anger over Turkey mine fire"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1 style=\"font-weight: bold; color: #000000;\">Image of PM&#8217;s aide kicking protester stokes anger over Turkey mine fire<\/h1>\n<div class=\"cnn_stryathrtmp\" style=\"color: #666666;\">\n<div class=\"cnnByline\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">By\u00a0<strong style=\"color: #000000;\">Ben Brumfield, Diana Magnay\u00a0<\/strong>and<strong style=\"color: #000000;\">\u00a0Laura Smith-Spark,\u00a0<\/strong>CNN<\/div>\n<div class=\"cnn_strytmstmp\">updated 8:08 PM EDT, Thu May 15, 2014<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"cnn_strycntntlft\" style=\"color: #000000;\">\n<div class=\"cnnExplainer cnn_html_slideshow\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">\n<div class=\"cnnstrylccimg640\" style=\"color: #666666;\">\n<div class=\"cnn_stryichgfull\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div class=\"cnn_stryichgflg\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div class=\"cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"articleGalleryPhoto005\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140515091418-06-turkey-protests-0515-horizontal-gallery.jpg\" alt=\"A protester is detained in front of the General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration headquarters in Istanbul on May 14.\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" border=\"0\" \/><cite id=\"galleryCaption005\" style=\"color: #ffffff;\">A protester is detained in front of the General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration headquarters in Istanbul on May 14.<\/cite><\/div>\n<div class=\"cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">\n<div class=\"cnn_clear\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div class=\"cnn_strylctcntr\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><strong>STORY HIGHLIGHTS<\/strong><\/div>\n<ul class=\"cnn_bulletbin cnnStryHghLght\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<li><b style=\"color: #ca0002;\">NEW:<\/b>\u00a0Foreign Minister defends PM, says Erdogan &#8220;always feels the pain of the people&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>PM&#8217;s aide seen kicking a protester tells Turkish media he regrets not staying calm<\/li>\n<li>Minister says 283 are confirmed dead after fire inside a mine in western Turkey<\/li>\n<li>Protesters lay symbolic coffins at government buildings, rail against PM Erdogan<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt adtag15090\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"ad-179cc9ea480c1691\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"179cc9ea480c1691\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/ads.cnn.com\/html.ng\/site=cnn&amp;cnn_position=150x90_spon1&amp;cnn_rollup=us&amp;page.allowcompete=no&amp;params.styles=fs&amp;Params.User.UserID=5376304d08f4e80a3c852e173c01fb21&amp;transactionID=14002545343498638319812608&amp;tile=0844354520041&amp;domId=179cc9ea480c1691&amp;kxid=n5w1tisk1&amp;kxseg=\" name=\"179cc9ea480c1691\" width=\"0\" height=\"0\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Soma, Turkey (CNN)<\/strong>\u00a0&#8212; The image of an aide to Turkey&#8217;s Prime Minister kicking a man protesting the mine disaster that has claimed nearly 300 lives has prompted outrage &#8212; and has become a symbol of the anger felt against the government.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph2\">The incident occurred as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited the western city of Soma a day after the devastating mine fire.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph3\">The man, detained by special forces, can be seen lying on the ground as the suited adviser to Erdogan, identified as Yusuf Yerkel by Turkish media and CNN Turk, aims a kick at him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph4\">The shocking image outraged many in Turkey, prompting an outpouring of anger on social media, and is seen as symbolizing the increasingly polarizing impact of Erdogan&#8217;s authority on the country.<\/p>\n<div id=\"expand15\" class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt cnn_strylftcexpbx\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"clickToPlayvideoContainerexpand15\" class=\"clickToPlay\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"box-image\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140515090858-01-turkey-protests-0515-story-body.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"214\" height=\"120\" border=\"0\" \/><cite class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Turkish PM&#8217;s aide kicks a protester<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<div id=\"expand25\" class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt cnn_strylftcexpbx\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"clickToPlayvideoContainerexpand25\" class=\"clickToPlay\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"box-image\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140515163603-natpkg-turkey-mine-anguish-rage-00001916-story-body.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"214\" height=\"120\" border=\"0\" \/><cite class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Mine disaster leaves families devastated<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<div id=\"expand35\" class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt cnn_strylftcexpbx\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"clickToPlayvideoContainerexpand35\" class=\"clickToPlay\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"box-image\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140515130124-turkey-miners-crying-story-body.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"214\" height=\"120\" border=\"0\" \/><cite class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Mass funeral held for Turkish miners<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<div id=\"expand45\" class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt cnn_strylftcexpbx\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"clickToPlayvideoContainerexpand45\" class=\"clickToPlay\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"box-image\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140515064540-03-turkey-0515-story-body.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"214\" height=\"120\" border=\"0\" \/><cite class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Turkey shaken by mine disaster<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph5\">It&#8217;s been nearly a year since anti-government protests first roiled Istanbul, prompting a response from authorities that was widely criticized as heavy-handed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph6\">Yerkel was quoted by Turkey&#8217;s semi-official Anadolu news agency as saying that he had been deeply saddened by Wednesday&#8217;s events. &#8220;I am sad that I could not keep my calm in the face of all the provocation, insults, and attacks that I was subjected to that day,&#8221; he reportedly said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph7\">Besides the anger prompted by the photo, Erdogan&#8217;s speech Wednesday to relatives of dead and injured miners was seen as insensitive and drew scathing criticism.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph8\">As public anger mounted through the evening, hundreds took to the streets in anti-government protests in Istanbul and Ankara, with police answering, in some cases, with water cannons and tear gas.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph9\">In Ankara, the nation&#8217;s capital, some left black coffins in front of the Energy Ministry and the Labor and Social Security ministry buildings. Meanwhile, unions called for strikes across the country on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph10\">At the mine, where what has become more of a recovery effort than a rescue continued, the mood was sullen, but there was little sign of the burning anger seen elsewhere over the accident.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph11\">Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said the number of coal miners confirmed dead had risen by one to 283, as of Thursday evening.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph12\">Three injured miners remain in the hospital, he said. The recovery operation is expected to continue overnight and into Friday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph13\"><strong>A &#8216;sorrow for the whole Turkish nation&#8217;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph14\">President Abdullah Gul offered words of comfort as he visited the western city, a day after his premier attracted public ire.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph15\">The mine fire is a &#8220;sorrow for the whole Turkish nation,&#8221; Gul told reporters, and he offered his condolences to the victims&#8217; families.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph16\">Onlookers listened silently until a man interrupted Gul with shouts: &#8220;Please, President! Help us, please!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph17\">An investigation into the disaster has begun, Gul said, adding that he was sure this would &#8220;shed light&#8221; on what regulations are needed. &#8220;Whatever is necessary will be done,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph18\">He commended mining as a precious profession. &#8220;There&#8217;s no doubt that mining and working &#8230; to earn your bread underground perhaps is the most sacred&#8221; of undertakings, he told reporters.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph19\">Gul had entered the mine site with an entourage of many dozens of people &#8212; mostly men in dark suits &#8212; walking through a crowd of rescue workers who were standing behind loosely assembled police barricades.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph20\">Rescue and recovery workers retrieved more bodies Thursday from the still smoldering coal mine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph21\">Resignation marked the workers&#8217; faces after they had stood and sat outside the mine for hours, idle and waiting. Some of them passed the time talking on cell phones, others smoking or taking off their hard hats and burying their faces in their hands.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph22\">With hope of finding survivors nearly gone, it appeared there was little they could do.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph23\"><strong>Funerals amid grief<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24\">Smoke and fumes are hindering efforts to reach more of those still missing below the surface and lessen the chances that any more will be found alive, even in special &#8220;safe&#8221; chambers equipped with oxygen and other supplies. Fourteen bodies were found in one such chamber.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph25\">More than a day has passed since anyone was pulled out alive.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph26\">Rescuers saved at least 88 miners in the frantic moments after a power transformer blew up Tuesday during a shift change at the mine, sparking a choking fire deep inside.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph27\">Since then, the bodies of nearly 200 miners who were trapped in the burning shaft nearly a mile underground have been returned to their families.<\/p>\n<div id=\"expand128\" class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt cnn_strylftcexpbx\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"clickToPlayvideoContainerexpand128\" class=\"clickToPlay\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"box-image\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140514105118-12-turkey-0514-story-body.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"214\" height=\"120\" border=\"0\" \/><cite class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Mine rescue efforts temporarily suspended<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<div id=\"expand228\" class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt cnn_strylftcexpbx\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"clickToPlayvideoContainerexpand228\" class=\"clickToPlay\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"box-image\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140514183457-turkey-mine-disaster-relative-anguish-00002001-story-body.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"214\" height=\"120\" border=\"0\" \/><cite class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Family: &#8216;Let this mine take my life too!&#8217;<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<div id=\"expand328\" class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt cnn_strylftcexpbxnv\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div class=\"cnnStoryElementBox\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"photoContainer3287\" class=\"cnnArticlePhotoContainer\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div class=\"cnnStoryElementBox\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"box-image\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140514115944-turkey-mine-accident-map-story-top.jpg\" alt=\"Map of the mine location\" width=\"214\" height=\"122\" border=\"0\" \/><cite class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Map of the mine location<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"expand428\" class=\"cnnGalleryContainer cnn_strylftcntnt\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div class=\"cnnStoryElementBox\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"photoContainer428\" class=\"cnnArticlePhotoContainer cnn_strylftcexpbxnv\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"photo428\" class=\"cnnArticleBoxImage\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140515064017-01-turkey-0515-horizontal-gallery.jpg\" alt=\"Photos: Coal mine disaster in Turkey\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" border=\"0\" \/><cite id=\"cite428\" class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Photos: Coal mine disaster in Turkey<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"expand528\" class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt cnn_strylftcexpbx\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div id=\"clickToPlayvideoContainerexpand528\" class=\"clickToPlay\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"box-image\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\" src=\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/140514162914-turkey-mine-stretcher-story-body.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"214\" height=\"120\" border=\"0\" \/><cite class=\"expCaption\"><span style=\"font-weight: inherit; color: #ffffff;\">Turkish opposition demanded mine reforms<\/span><\/cite><\/div>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph28\">&#8220;Enough, for the life for me!&#8221; yelled one woman &#8212; her arms flailing, tears running down her cheeks. &#8220;Let this mine take my life, too!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph29\">Funerals took place Thursday in a community stricken with grief.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph30\">Autopsies on dozens of bodies revealed the miners died of carbon monoxide poisoning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph31\">Erdogan said Wednesday that as many as 120 more were trapped inside the mine, though that was before rescue crews grimly hurried a series of stretchers &#8212; at least some clearly carrying corpses &#8212; past the waiting crowd.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph32\">In his much-criticized speech to the relatives of the dead and injured, the Prime Minister glossed over the issue of mine safety, describing the carnage they had suffered as par for the course in their dangerous business.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph33\">Apparently on the defensive, he rattled off a string of horrible past accidents, even going back to an example from 19th-century Britain.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph34\">As he took a stroll through the city, onlookers showered him with deafening jeers as well as chants of &#8220;Resign, Prime Minister!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph35\">Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu defended the government&#8217;s response and Erdogan\u00a0during an interviewwith CNN&#8217;s Christiane Amanpour on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph36\">&#8220;All the efforts will be done to check what was wrong, if there was anything wrong during this disaster or before,&#8221; he said, stressing the country&#8217;s standards are &#8220;quite high.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph37\">About Erdogan, Davutoglu said: &#8220;He was feeling all these pains in his heart. Everybody knows that our Prime Minister is always with the people, and always feels the pain of the people. Otherwise, he wouldn&#8217;t get such a high support in eight elections in (the) last 10 years.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph38\"><strong>Scathing engineers&#8217; accusations<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph39\">A group of engineers investigating the cause of the inferno made a scandalous accusation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph40\">&#8220;WHAT HAPPENED IN SOMA IS NOT FATE, IT IS MURDER,&#8221; a local branch of the Chamber of Electrical Engineers wrote in all capital letters at the top of its official statement Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph41\">Although the group is not known for any party affiliation and comprises serious experts, such barbs have become common in a country riven with political division, where street protests and water cannons have become a familiar sight.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph42\">The statement also reflects the anguish that has shaken Turkey after what looks to be the deadliest mine disaster in its history.<\/p>\n<div class=\"cnn_strylftcntnt\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div class=\"cnn_strylctcntr cnn_stryfactbox\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\">\n<div class=\"cnn_strycorrheader\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>5 worst coal mining disasters<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>1942 Honkeiko Colliery, China: 1549 dead<\/p>\n<p>1906 Courri\u00e8res, France: 1,099 dead<\/p>\n<p>1914 Hojo Colliery, Japan: 687 dead<\/p>\n<p>1960 Laobaidong Colliery, China: 682 dead<\/p>\n<p>1963 Mitsui Miike, Japan: 458 dead<\/p>\n<div class=\"cnn_pad20top\" style=\"font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph43\">The latest death toll already tops a mining accident in the 1990s that took 260 lives.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph44\">The chamber of electricians also contradicted the official version of how the fire started, saying: &#8220;The fire was not caused by an electrical situation as presented to the public in the first statements.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph45\">The assessment from inspectors from the chamber&#8217;s local branch in Izmir on what happened suggests negligence may have played a part.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph46\">&#8220;The inspection revealed that the systems to sense poisonous and explosive gases in the mine and the systems to manage the air systems were insufficient and old,&#8221; they said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph47\">The blaze started as a &#8220;coal fire&#8221; at 700 meters deep, and then air fans pushed the flames and smoke farther through the mine, the chamber concluded. The ventilation was not corrected until &#8220;much later.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph48\">The miners were trapped and inundated with smoke and fire.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph49\">Soma&#8217;s public prosecutor&#8217;s office has started an investigation of its own into the fire, Turkey&#8217;s semiofficial Anadolu news agency reported.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph50\"><strong>Political bonfire<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph51\">The chamber&#8217;s accusations land on top of those already heaped on Erdogan&#8217;s government by his political opponents.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph52\">Opposition politician Ozgur Ozel from the Manisa region, which includes Soma, filed a proposal in late April to investigate Turkish mines after repeated deadly accidents.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph53\">He has said that he is sick of going to funerals for miners in his district.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph54\">Several dozen members of opposition parties signed on to his proposal, but Erdogan&#8217;s conservative government overturned it. Some of its members publicly lampooned it, an opposition spokesman said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph55\">The mine, owned by SOMA Komur Isletmeleri A.S., underwent regular inspections in the past three years, two of them this March, Turkey&#8217;s government said. Inspectors reported no violation of health and safety laws.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph56\"><strong>Waiting on dead friends<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph57\">For Veysel Sengul, a miner waiting by the mine&#8217;s entrance for more of his friends to emerge, the mourning may go on much longer than the three days of official grieving ordered by Erdogan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph58\">After what&#8217;s happened, he said, he&#8217;ll never work in a mine again.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph59\">Rescuers haven&#8217;t given up hope that some miners reached emergency chambers stocked with gas masks and air and could still be alive.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph60\">But Yildiz, the energy minister, said &#8220;hopes are diminishing&#8221; of rescuing anyone yet inside the mine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph61\">Sengul has already given up. The miner knows that at least four of his friends are dead.<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph62\">Despair, anger, dwindling hope after Turkey coal mine fire<\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph62\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/140515090858-01-turkey-protests-0515-horizontal-gallery.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-107649\" src=\"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/140515090858-01-turkey-protests-0515-horizontal-gallery.jpg\" alt=\"140515090858-01-turkey-protests-0515-horizontal-gallery\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/140515090858-01-turkey-protests-0515-horizontal-gallery.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/140515090858-01-turkey-protests-0515-horizontal-gallery-300x169.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"cnn_strycbftrtxt\" style=\"color: #999999;\">Diana Magnay, Ivan Watson and Gul Tuysuz reported from western Turkey; Ben Brumfield reported and wrote from Atlanta and Laura Smith-Spark from London. CNN&#8217;s Michael Pearson, Greg Botelho and Talia Kayali contributed to this report.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Image of PM&#8217;s aide kicking protester stokes anger over Turkey mine fire By\u00a0Ben Brumfield, Diana Magnay\u00a0and\u00a0Laura Smith-Spark,\u00a0CNN updated 8:08 PM EDT, Thu May 15, 2014 A protester is detained in front of the General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration headquarters in Istanbul on May 14. STORY HIGHLIGHTS NEW:\u00a0Foreign Minister defends PM, says Erdogan &#8220;always [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":782144,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[89],"tags":[9453,1018,9452],"class_list":["post-107648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-turkey","tag-coal","tag-recep-tayyip-erdogan","tag-soma"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107648\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/782144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}