Internationally known Turkish singer İbrahim Tatlıses was clinging to life late Monday after being shot in the head in Istanbul’s Şişli’s district, an attack that occurred shortly after midnight Sunday.
Tatlıses was leaving the Beyaz TV Channel studio building in Maslak Nurol Plaza, where he was filming a program, when unknown assailants in a black car opened fire with long-barreled weapons before fleeing the scene.
The singer was shot in the head and his assistant Buket Çakıcı, who was accompanying him, was hit in the shoulder. Tatlıses’ bodyguards brought the injured singer and his assistant to the Private Levent Hospital in the singer’s car.
Following the administration of first aid, Tatlıses and Çakıcı were transferred to Maslak Acıbadem Hospital, where the singer underwent surgery for around 45 minutes before he was taken to an intensive-care unit. Doctors said his health condition was still critical and he underwent a second surgery around 3 a.m.
“The singer remains in critical condition. We have been able to reduce the swelling in his brain to an acceptable level. We have induced a coma, but we plan to wake him toward the morning. Another [scan] will be done tomorrow morning. We will make the final decision to awaken him depending on its outcome,” said İlhan Elmacı, a neurosurgeon.
The doctor said there was a risk of permanent damage, but the main aim was to eradicate the vital risk, adding that surgery has been done to prevent permanent damage that could develop over time. “When he arrived at the hospital, the left side of his body was paralyzed and many consequent operations were done. Right now, no surgery is required. We will see his final condition with the [scan],” Elmacı said.
Asked whether Tatlıses was shot with one bullet, the doctor said the Forensic Medicine Institute would determine that answer. According to Elmacı, serious damage had occurred in the singer’s brain. “At the point of impact in his skull, there were many cracks. There was bleeding between the cerebral cortex and the brain, yet there wasn’t bleeding inside of his brain,” he said. “Right now, the bleeding has stopped. We have a very experienced team reducing the brain pressure. The process of sleeping is handled under our control.”
The area of the brain where the singer was hit does not involve speech functions, said the doctor, saying that Tatlıses would not have difficulty retaining his famous voice. “He might have some loss of power, but I don’t think that he will have a physical problem,” he said. “Our first priority is to get him upgraded from critical condition. Afterwards, we will make a plan of how we can fix the body’s functions; that will take a year.”
Tatlıses’ family and fans are anxiously waiting in the hospital, the doctor said, adding that nobody but medical personnel can enter the intensive care unit. “Rumors saying that people are entering the intensive health unit are a lie. He is under our control in the intensive health unit,” Elmacı said.
The armed attack on the singer involved at least two people, said Public Security Branch Office teams that are investigating security cameras and MOBESE cameras around the buildings. According to information obtained so far, four bullets hit Tatlıses’ car. Four bullet traces were found around the buildings and 11 empty cases were recovered from the scene of the attack.
