A Turkish court jailed five suspects yesterday on murder charges linked to the killings of three Christians.
The victims were tied up and had their throats cut at a publishing house that had drawn protests by nationalists for distributing Bibles.
Six other suspects were released pending trial, the court said. A 12th suspect, who tried to escape by jumping from a fourth-floor balcony at the scene of the killings, is in hospital and is expected to be charged later.
The three victims - a German man and two Turks who converted to Christianity - were killed last Wednesday at a Christian publishing house in Malatya.
The attack added to concerns in Europe about whether the predominantly Muslim country - which is bidding for European Union membership - can protect its religious minorities.
Christians make up just a fraction of 1 per cent of Turkey's population of 71 million.