Three people have been taken into custody in connection with the case of Hurmüz Diril from a Christian village in Şırnak, who has been missing for a year and a half. This was announced by Rojhat Dilsiz, president of the Şırnak Bar Association. According to the statement, the detentions took place today, Sunday. One of the persons is Apro Diril, the neighbor and cousin of the missing man. The charges against him are unclear. Information on the identity of the other two detainees is also not yet available.

The village of Mehrê (Kovankaya) is located in the district of Beytüşşebap in the Kurdish province of Şırnak. It has been traditionally inhabited by Assyrian and Chaldean Christians. Hurmüz and his wife Şimoni Diril are from this village. The couple disappeared on January 11, 2020. The mutilated body of Şimoni Diril was discovered on the banks of the Hezil River after 69 days. There is no trace of Hurmüz Diril, who was 71 years old at the time of his disappearance, even 530 days after his disappearance.

The investigation into the disappearance of Hurmüz and Şimoni Diril, which was opened under pressure from one of the couple's sons, the Chaldean priest Remzi Diril, quickly revealed numerous inconsistencies and contradictions. A secrecy order was imposed on the file, and the authorities prohibited the publication of Şimoni Diril's autopsy report. Apro Diril, the only "eyewitness," stated during his interrogation that the couple had been abducted by "PKK fighters." Pro-government media also carried the story. However, the man did not call the police because he did not have a cell phone at the time of the alleged observation. This claim subsequently turned out to be false. The People's Defense Forces (HPG) had denied any complicity in May last year and referred to state counter forces.

Remzi Diril, commonly called Father Adday, who is responsible for the pastoral care of thousands of Chaldean refugees and displaced persons from Iraq and Syria from Istanbul, his siblings and cousins had hinted several times that a relative of the family who wanted to appropriate the land of Şimoni and Hurmüz Diril might have committed the crime: Apro Diril. In the past, there had been several disputes over this. In addition, the couple's children criticized the state authorities for shortcomings in the search for missing persons. Şimoni Diril's body, for example, had been discovered by the 65-year-old woman's eldest son.

Apro Diril was not arrested for the first time. He had been released only in exchange for a ban on leaving the country and reporting requirements.

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