Police Attack on Yüksel Street, Solidarity Watch Continues

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A police attack occurred on Yüksel Street in front of the Human Rights Monument where academic Nuriye Gülmen and teacher Semih Özakça have been staging protest demanding that they be reinstated to their jobs.

Yüksel'e çok sert polis saldırısı oldu! Gözaltılar var!!! Saldiri video part 1. @NuriyeGulmen @SemihOzakca pic.twitter.com/XQw8rsaReb

— Seyri Sokak (@seyrisokak) 15 Mayıs 2017

Police used pepper gas and detained three people in the attack which occurred at around 1:30 a.m. on the 189th day of the protest and 69th days of the hunger strike.

Son Dakika. Bu gece 01.35. Yüksel Caddesi'ne polis gazla saldırdı, 3 kişiyi gözaltına aldı. Bir kişi baygınlık geçirdi [VIDEO Parça 1] pic.twitter.com/Us55BkVus3

— Seyri Sokak (@seyrisokak) 15 Mayıs 2017

The watch continues following the police attack.

Speaking to bianet, Nuriye Gülmen commenting on the attack said “They think that they can resolve this matter by feeding us by reducing people’s support to minimum but we will win”.

Gülmen also stated that they dedicated their hunger strike to the prisoners who are on hunger strike in Palestine.

About Gülmen and Özakça

Nuriye Gülmen was employed at Eskişehir Osmangazi University.

After her contract was not renewed, she brought a lawsuit and won. Seven months later, she started to work at Selçuk University. A day after she started her job, she was suspended from her duty based on the “FETÖ-PDY (Fethullahist Terror Organization-Parallel State Structure) investigation launched into her. She was discharged on January 6, 2017 via the Statutory Decree No. 679.

Semih Özakça was a classroom teacher at Mazıdağı Cumhuriyet Primary School in Mardin. He was discharged via the Statutory Decree No. 675 over “being linked with terror organizations”.

Gülmen has been in front of Human Rights Monument on Yüksel Street in Ankara to stage a sit-in since November 9, and Özakça since November 23.

On March 11, they declared that they would go on a permanent non—rotational hunger strike. They were detained on March 9 and they went on hunger strike in custody. (BK/TK)