Turkish Mountaineer who escaped from Nanga Parbat base camp wants to go back to Pakistan

Tunç Fındık with Chinese Mountaineer Yang Chungfeng

ISLAMABAD, Jul 1 (APP): The Turkish mountaineers Tunc Findik returned to Turkey after being able to escape from the deadly attack which targeted mountaineers at a base camp of Nanga Parbat. According to a message received here Monday, Tunc Findik arrived in Istanbul, on a scheduled Turkish Airline flight from Islamabad on June 25. Talking to media at the airport, he said,” I was at 6100 metre when the unfortunate attack happened, he said. Being at a high altitude is the main reason that I’ve survived this terrorist attack. Our team consisted of 60 people in total. About 30 of us were at higher camps while the rest of our colleagues resting at the main camp were the ones who lost their lives.”  He said,”this was an unforeseeable attack; therefore, no one was able to stop it. Honestly, I am truly lucky to be alive and very grateful about it. I experienced the event while I was still at the mountain. Pakistan army maintained security after a short while.” 

“I did not see the attack because it happened the night of our departure from the camp. These people did what they planned previously and we believe that this was an organized crime. I traveled to Pakistan four times already and spent almost a year at the mountains of Pakistan,” Findik said.
Mr. Findik said at the moment, Pakistani government did not permit the climbers in the area. He showed his determination to travel back to Pakistan after the issue is settled.
“As soon as the Government of Pakistan secures the area, I will go back to Pakistan. There are four other peaks that are higher than 8000 metres in Pakistan and I am planning to climb them all. As you can see, I still have a lot to do in Pakistan’s mountains. Also, I really like the Pakistani people and I am determined to go back there,” said determined Findik.
Findik said this kind of attack happened for the first time in the history of Pakistan’s mountaineering. The attack damaged the Pakistani mountain tourism and hit the regional economy badly.  Pakistani people are very welcoming and helpful; therefore, these attacks won’t be generalized to whole nation.”
The Turkish mountaineer has undertaken a project named “14x8000” in the mountaineering field which means of climbing 14 peaks that are 8000 metres or higher.
Tun‡ Findik is the first Turkish climber who have managed to climb 9 out of 14 of the world’s highest peaks and one of the 44 climbers of the world who have achieved to climb the highest 7 peaks of the 8000 metres range.