Directorate confirms death of three prisoners

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Claims circulated on social media for two days that prisoners were killed when suppressing a "riot" in prison in Hatay, Türkiye following the February 6 earthquakes.

CİSST, the Criminal Execution System Civil Society Association, an association founded in 2006 in order to protect the rights and freedoms of prisoners shared an information note yesterday on what had happened.

The Directorate General of Prisons and Detention Houses of the Ministry of Justice also announced today that 3 prisoners had lost their lives.

"Attempted jail escapes"

Accordingly, the deaths occurred in the Hatay T Type prison during an attempted jail escape, but there was no loss of life in the Maraş Türkoğlu No. 1 L Type Prison.

The Directorate announced that some ordinary prisoners had attempted jail escape and started a fire and that an intervention was made.

"The attempted jail escape was prevented and the fire was put out as a result of the intervention, and the prisoners were saved.
12 prisoners were injured during the intervention, and three of the injured who were sent to the hospital died.

Inspectors from the Ministry of Justice and auditors of the Directorate General of Prisons and Detention Houses have been appointed.

"Legal and administrative investigation started"

A legal and also administrative investigation was started. Allegations of rape of women prisoners and other false charges are completely unreal.

The prisoners were transferred to other prisons, the Directorate informed since the prisons were not uninhabitable. 

"Pictures from another prison"

The statement by the Directorate also responds to the images circulated on social media. The pictures which were claimed to be from the Hatay T Type prison were not from that prison, but from the Kahramanmaraş Türkoğlu No. 1 L Type Prison, the statement says.

The statement adds that there was also an attempted jail escape in this prison, which was stopped, but that there was no loss of life in this event. (AS/PE)