Turkey widens post-coup purge
got sacked*
detained
arrested
schools, dormitories and universities shut down
academics lost jobs
judges, prosecutors dismissed
media outlets shut down
journalists arrested**
since July 15, 2016 as of June 17, 2017
*This number includes (1) state officials, teachers, bureaucrats, and academics who were dismissed by gov’t decrees, No. 667 issued on July 23, No.668 issued on July 25, No.669 issued on July 31, No. 672 issued on Sept. 1, No.675 issued on Oct. 29, No. 677/678 issued on Nov. 22, 2016, No.679/680/681 issued on Jan. 6, 2017, No.682/683/684/685 issued on Jan 23, 2017, and No.689 issued on April 29, 2017; (2) academics who lost their jobs by gov’t decrees, No. 677 issued on July 23, No.675 issued on Oct. 29, 2016, and No.689 issued on April 29, 2017; (3) teachers whose licenses were revoked by Turkey’s Education Ministry on July 19, 2016; (4) and dismissed military personnel [6,511 officers and 16,409 cadets]. For detailed information, please visit: turkeypurge.com/purge-in-numbers and turkeypurge.com/academics-sacked-from-positions.
**Data compiled from PEN International, Platform for Independent Journalism (P24), Stockholm Center for Freedom (SCF), Journalists’ Union of Turkey (TGS), Progressive Journalists Association (ÇGD), and Bianet online news portal. For detailed information, please visit: https://turkeypurge.com/journalism-in-jail.
For Immediate Release:
“We’re concerned about the fate of people in Turkish prisons”
21 including housewives detained over ByLock mobile app
At least 21 people were detained as part of an investigation into the Gulen movement followers in Zonguldak, on Wednesday. Police carried out operations to detain the suspects in Kozlu, Kilimli and Ereğli districts. Detainees included 10 females, among them several...
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Teacher who turned himself in as Gulenist sentenced to 7.5 years in jail
Alper Ertürk, an Aydin-based teacher who reported himself to a prosecutor for his affiliation to the Gulen movement, has been sentenced to 7 years and 6 months in prison. According to state-run Anadolu news agency, Erturk said in a petition to the Istanbul Public...
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Judge who imprisoned 517 people over Gülen links faces investigation over similar charges
Murat Taşhan, a Corum judge who sent 517 people from 21 different occupations to prison over their alleged links to the Gülen movement, was detained as part of a separate investigation into the group last week. Tashan was taken into custody along with his 5 colleagues...
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Death of writer who fell from balcony during police raid suspicious: daughter
Şeyma Ölmez, the daughter of Turkish writer Mustafa Hikmet Kayapalı who passed away after falling from a three-storey-building in the Balikesir in May, said police officers may have had a role in her father’s death. Kayapalı fell to his death, state-run Anadolu agency...
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49 social media users taken under custody over past week: ministry
The Turkish Interior Ministry announced on Monday that at least 49 people were detained over the past week on charges of making propaganda on social media on behalf of the Gulen movement and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Islamic State of Iraq and...
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Another woman faces detention at hospital just after giving birth
Elif Coşkun, who just gave birth on Monday night in Turkey’s western province of İzmir, will reportedly be taken into custody at the hospital due to her links to the Gülen movement, according to an opposition deputy. Raising concerns about the situation of Coşkun from...
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Detained woman, newborn baby transferred to prison 1,291 km away from home
Detained in the southern province of Isparta as part of a post-coup investigation, a woman, identified with initials Ö.A., has been transferred to a prison in Siirt, an eastern province 1,291 kilometers away from home. According to Aktif Haber online news portal, Ö.A....
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Under arrest for months, 62-year-old teacher dies of cancer in prison
Arrested for raising donations on behalf of a Gülen movement-linked charity, 62-year-old religion and ethics teacher Hüseyin Pembe passed away after his battle with cancer in prison on June 1. With the starting date for his imprisonment still unknown, Pembe has been...
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Police detain another woman shortly after delivery, bringing total to 9
Esra Demir, 31-year-old teacher who gave birth to a baby at a Batman hospital on Sunday, was reportedly detained by police and taken to a police station with her newborn baby on Monday as part of an investigation into Turkey’s Gülen group. Republican People’s Party...
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Under police custody for days, woman covers 50 km to feed one-year old baby twice a day
Şule Akkaya, a primary school teacher who was detained on June 1 as part of an investigation into Turkey’s Gülen group, reportedly covers 40 to 50 km twice a day to breastfeed her one-year-old baby in Zonguldak. According to TR724 news portal, Şule Akkaya, whose...
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Torture not an isolated incident in Turkish prisons: report
The torture, ill-treatment, abusive, inhumane and degrading treatment of people who are deprived of their liberties in Turkey’s detention centers and prisons has become the norm rather than the exception under increased nationalistic euphoria and religious zealotry in...
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Local NGOs urge Georgian gov’t to avoid returning Turkish teacher back home
Eight non-governmental organizations have called on the Georgian government to refrain from returning detained Turkish teacher to back home where “he will be possibly subjected to political persecution, torture, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment. “[He]...
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HRW urges Myanmar, Thailand not to comply with Turkey’s further requests for refoulement
Burmese authorities have forced back Turkish asylum seeker, Muhammet Furkan Sökmen via Thailand, putting him at risk of serious human rights violations, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a statement on June 1. “To make it clear they will not further violate...
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UN demands access to 3 Turks forcibly returned from Malaysia
The United Nations Human Rights Committee has urged Turkey to confirm the whereabouts of three Turkish nationals who were detained in Malaysia at Ankara’s request due to their ties to the Gülen movement, a statement by the Brussels-based Intercultural Dialogue...
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UN warns Myanmar, Thailand for recent deportation of Turkish national
The United Nations stated grave concern on Saturday over the deportation by Myanmar and Thailand of Muhammet Furkan Sökmen, a Turkish teacher working for two schools established by Gülen movement followers in Myanmar. In a statement issued on Saturday, the UN Human...
read moreHuman Tragedies of Turkey’s Purge
Gokhan Acikkollu
High School Teacher
Gokhan was detained on July 23, 2016 as part of Turkey’s post-coup crackdown. Although he was suffering from sever diabetes, he was denied access to his medics for six days. After 13 days in custody, Gokhan was found dead in his prison cell on August 5.
Mustafa Torer
Businessman
Mustafa was among 45 thousand people in Turkey’s massive crackdown following the coup attempt. He was taken into Iskenderun jailhouse. Under severe stress and trauma, Mustafa, who had already been suffering of diabetes, died over a heart attack.
Furkan D.
12-year-old cancer patient
12-year-old Furkan died of brain cancer several months after Turkish border agents seized his and his parents’ passports at Istanbul Ataturk Airport, causing the family to abandon their plans to receive cancer treatment in Cuba.
Filiz Y.
30-year-old mother
Filiz Y., a 30-year-old woman who gave birth at Mercin City Hospital on February 6, 2017, was detained in the wee hours of February 7, over alleged links to the Gulen Movement.
Hacı Isa Sezek
83-year-old civilian
83-year-old Haci Isa Sezek, arrested on charges of “membership in an armed organization” on January 3, 2017, is being kept in the same holding cell with his 29-year-old grandchild Suleyman Sezek.
Bilal Konakçı
Bomb Disposal Expert
Bilal Konakci, a former bomb disposal expert who was retired after he lost his right hand and both eyes while trying to dispose of a bomb in 2009, was detained on December 20, 2016, over links to the Gulen Movement.
5 Kids
A video shared on January 23, 2016 on social media showed five children left alone in tears in front of Sincan Prison in Ankara after their mother was detained while they were visiting their father in prison.
Yavuz Bolek
Jailed Police Chief
Yavuz Bolek, a police chief dismissed from profession following corruption probes implicating Erdogan, has cancer and will be soon be struck with paralysis if he isn’t given medical attention. His pleas are ignored.
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