HUMAN RIGHTS

Latest News

• NGOs expose increase in number of women executed in Iran  

  It has been reported that there has been a strong increase of 25 percent in executions in Iran in 2021. In particular, there is a significant increase in the number of women executed.
• IBAHRI condemns the sentencing of Osman Kavala to life-long imprisonment 

  Growing reactions against the sentencing of Osman Kavala, who was charged with ‘attempting to overthrow the government by force’ in relation to the Gezi Park protests.
• Hıdır Sabur: We must raise our voice to expose violations of rights in prison 

  Hıdır Sabur, the term spokesperson of the Solidarity with Prisoners Initiative, said that many prisoners' families are afraid to speak up because of the oppression, and stressed that the torture of prisoners has increased and they need to be heard.
• Amnesty International says conviction of Osman Kavala a devastating blow for human rights 

  Amnesty International’s Europe Director said that "Gezi verdict deals a devastating blow not only to Osman Kavala, his co-defendants and their families, but to everyone who believes in justice and human rights activism in Turkey and beyond."
• Court says the officer who ran over 5-year-old child ‘cannot be attributed negligence’ 

  The criminal court of first instance handed down its detailed judgment in the trial of the police officer who had run over Efe Tektekin with an armored vehicle in Diyarbakır and was acquitted by court.
• Habip Eksik says that the AKP government appears to have declared war on prisoners 

  HDP Law and Human Rights Commission member Habip Eksik said that the AKP government has almost declared war on prisoners, and that jails have been turned into death houses and torture centers.
• Prisoners on hunger strike denied salt and sugar 

  Prisoners on hunger strike at Islahiye T Type Prison are not provided with salt, sugar, and lemon.
• DBP Van Provincial co-chair says violations in prisons increase 

  DBP Van Provincial co-chair Çetin Uyar drew attention to the increasing pressure in prisons after Bekir Bozdağ became Minister of Justice and called for sensitivity.
• Eighty-year-old Beşiri Yıldırım arrested after being tortured 

  Beşiri Yıldırım, 80, who was tortured in the village of Timoq, was arrested.
• 101 refugees of Afghan nationality detained in Van 

  101 refugees of Afghan nationality were detained in a vehicle stopped by soldiers in Van.
• Two prisoners go on a 10-day hunger strike in Silivri Prison against violation of rights 

  Prisoners in Silivri Prison No. 7 were threatened with death by the guards. Two prisoners went on a 10-day hunger strike.
• Tortured prisoners transferred from Silivri 

  Several of the inmates tortured in the high-security Silivri No. 5 prison and coerced into attempting suicide, according to the Human Rights Association (IHD), have been transferred to other detention centers.
• Öcalan’s lawyers submit urgent request to CPT 

  The legal team of Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan has submitted an urgent request to the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) demanding an immediate visit to the prison island of Imrali.
• Lawyer Yunus Emre Şahan: Prisoners have their right to access health denied  

  Lawyer Yunus Emre Şahan said that the prisoners' right to access health is prevented and added that "because of these prohibitions, those with chronic diseases can die even because of a small flu."
• HDP brings Newala Qesaba to Parliament 

  The HDP had been prevented from visiting Newala Qesaba and brought the issue to the agenda of the Parliament, filing a criminal complaint against state forces.
• Man who was tortured by soldiers sent to prison 

  Yahya Karabaş, who was tortured by soldiers in the village of Timoq was sent to prison.
• Turkey: 10 physicians died as a result of violence in healthcare in 20 years 

  Press statements have been made by healthcare workers across Turkey on the occasion of “Day of Struggle Against Violence in Healthcare.”
• Police detains activists protesting for prisoners in Istanbul 

  Police attacked the ‘bloody coffin’ protest that the Initiative for Solidarity with Prisoners staged in front of the Forensic Medicine Institution in Istanbul against increasing torture and deaths in prisons. Three activists were detained.
• 70-year-old prisoner remains in prison despite not being able to meet his needs 

  Abdulbaki Harmancı, 70, who is being held in Erzurum H Type Prison, has serious health problems and is no longer able to meet his needs.
• Prisoners in Diyarbakır High Security Prison go on a 3-day hunger strike against torture 

  Prisoners in Diyarbakır High Security Prison No. 1 went on a 3-day hunger strike against torture and ill-treatment and issued a call on civil society organizations.
• Police beat lawyer Orhan Alphan in Batman Courthouse 

  Lawyer Orhan Alphan, who tried to prevent the torture of a prisoner in Batman Courthouse, was subjected to police violence himself. Batman Bar Association strongly condemned the attack.
• Yılmaz: My brother was tortured to death, ATK asked for a bribe 

  Hikmet Yılmaz, brother of prisoner Ferhan Yılmaz who lost his life in Silivri Prison No. 5, said that his brother did not die of a heart attack as claimed, rather he was tortured to death and that a bribe of 30 thousand TL was asked from the family.
• Iran court upholds death sentence for captured HPG fighter Hatem Özdemir  

  The death sentence for the captured HPG fighter Hatem Özdemir has been confirmed by the Iranian judiciary.
• Guards force prisoners to commit suicide in Silivri 

  It is reported that guards in Silivri prison left ropes and razors in cells to force prisoners to commit suicide.
• Police launch investigation against disabled man in Van after beating him 

  An investigation was launched against Uğur Acar, a 65 percent disabled 24-year-old who was beaten by police while working as a tea seller in Van and stayed in the intensive care unit for 3 days, on the charge of ‘resisting the officer in charge’.