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tafa Kemal Ataturk 5. SOUNDBITE (English) Ugur Ziyal, Turkish Ambassador to Italy: ''What we know is that this man was acting alone, because there were 107 passengers on the plane and after the investigation of the Italian authorities 106 of them left the country, and there was only one person that was arrested for the crime of hijacking. So it seems that the findings of the Italian authorities was that he was acting alone, and I have nothing to say this is incorrect." 6. Cutaway of Turkish flag on desk 7. SOUNDBITE (English) Ugur Ziyal, Turkish Ambassador to Italy: ''I don't think there is a letter of this kind because, if there was it would be in the press by now." 8. Cutaway of hands 9. SOUNDBITE (English) Ugur Ziyal, Turkish Ambassador to Italy: ''The Turkish authorities have not asked for the extradition of the man, we know that this is a crime under international law and national law, and it is the duty of the Italians to prosecute him and keep us informed of the outcomings, and there is no extradition order against this gentleman contrary to whatever he may be saying." 10. Photograph of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk 11. SOUNDBITE (English) Ugur Ziyal, Turkish Ambassador to Italy: ''This issue has turned into a comedy of misrepresentation, because first it was said this was a move against the trip of the pope (to Turkey), then it was said he was being persecuted because he is a Christian, this is not true. He was travelling on a Turkish passport with Turkish travel documents and his ticket was provided by the United Nations High Commissioner Office for Refugees in Tirana (Slovenia). He wanted to go back to Turkey, but in the meantime he pulled off a stunt like this and what his motive is, really I do not know." 12. Wide exterior of Turkish Embassy STORYLINE Turkey's Ambassador to Italy, Ugur Ziyal, dismissed claims that a man who hijacked a Turkish airliner to Italy was afraid of being persecuted in Turkey following his conversion to Christianity. On Wednesday Italian prosecutor Giuseppe Giannuzzi said the Turkish army deserter who hijacked the plane wanted Pope Benedict XVI's protection. ''This issue has turned into a comedy of misrepresentation," Ziyal said. The Turkish Airlines Boeing 737-400 with 113 people aboard was hijacked on Tuesday during a flight from Tirana, Albania, to Istanbul, Turkey. It landed in the southern Italian Adriatic port city of Brindisi after Italian air force fighter jets escorted the aircraft there. Italian officials said Hakan Ekinci, who was unarmed, slipped into the cockpit and handed the pilot a note, claiming that he had a message for Benedict and that other hijackers aboard another, unspecified plane would blow it up unless his message was delivered. Ziyal also dismissed the claim that Ekinci prepared a note: ''I don't think there is a letter of this kind because, if there was it would be in the press by now." Ziyal said Ekinci flew to Albania on a Turkish passport, then about three days ago went to the Turkish Embassy in Tirana and said the hotel where he had been staying, had confiscated his passport because he had not paid his bill, and asked embassy officials for papers so he could travel back to Turkey. The UN High Commission for Refugees then bought his ticket to Turkey, Ziyal said. Turkish police identified Ekinci as a 28-year-old army deserter who fled to Albania in May and had asked for political asylum there. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives ​​ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/4c85e6a5dc72a4bfb9dfd1418e78fda2