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Mehmet Emin Özkan was released today due to severe health problems, after serving 27 years in prison. Özkan could hardly remain standing with the help of his family members.
Lastly, Özkan was hospitalized in the intensive care unit of the Diyarbakır Gazi Yaşargil Hospital on July 13. He was sent back to the Diyarbakır 1st High-Security Prison after his treatment.
He was released today (July 17) based on a last medical report by the Forensic Medicine Institute.
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Mehmet Emin Özkan while in hospital in June 2022
The 85-year-old prisoner was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for the alleged murder of Brigadier General Bahtiyar Aydın in the events of 1993, in Lice, Diyarbakır, where 17 people were killed and scores of homes and workplaces were set on fire.
Also on the ill prisoners' list of the Human Rights Association (İHD), Özkan was suffering many chronic illnesses such as heart trouble, high blood pressure, toxic diffuse goiter, bone loss, renal and intestinal disorders, excessive weight loss, vision and sensory loss, and loss of memory.
27 years in prison
Özkan was held responsible for the killing of Brigadier General Bahtiyar Aydın on October 22, 1993, in Lice. He was taken into custody in Mersin in 1996 and was arrested in line with the testimony of two witnesses.
Although the two witnesses later declared that they have given the testimonies under torture, and the European Court of Human Rights ruled that there was a violation of the "right to a fair trial," and a decision was given for a retrial, the retrial that started in 2014 is still pending.
Özkan was not released from prison despite contracting many illnesses while in prison. The report given by the Diyarbakır Gazi Yaşargil Hospital on April 6, 2015, was stating that there was an 87 percent loss in his bodily functions. However, Özkan was kept in prison in line with the reports prepared by the Forensic Medicine Institution stating that "he can stay in prison."
What happened in 1993 in Lice and in the Lice case?In the Lice district of Diyarbakır, 17 people were killed, and scores of homes and workplaces were set on fire on October 22, 1993. Brigadier General Bahtiyar Aydın was among the killed. The indictment regarding the massacre was accepted one day before the timeout. The trial began 21 years after the massacre, on January 2014. According to the indictment, the attack was not carried by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), contrary to what authorities announced at the time. Then Diyarbakır Gendarmerie Regimental Commander Colonel Eşref Hatipoğlu and First Lieutenant Tünay Yanardağ were identified as perpetrators of the massacre. The two former officers were charged with "premeditated murder", "encouraging the people to riot" and "forming an organization on the purpose of committing an illegal act". The prosecutor demanded prison sentences of up to 24 years and aggravated life imprisonment for both Hatipoğlu and Yanardağ. The suspects were not arrested after the hearing. In the following months, the case was first moved from Diyarbakır to Eskişehir, and then moved to Diyarbakır again. For the last time, the case was moved to İzmir on the grounds that there was not a court authorized by the 10th article of the anti-terror law in Diyarbakır. İzmir 1st Heavy Penal Court suspended the trial on June 13, 2014. The court ruled that after the abolishment of the special courts, continuing this trial is subject to permission. Intervening lawyers appealed against the decision. High Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) reversed the judgment and gave its verdict that the case to continue at İzmir 1st Heavy Penal Court. With Tünay Yanardağ losing his life on August 2015, Hatipoğlu remained the only defendant. Lawyers of the victims stated that they do not believe Yanardağ is dead and demanded an investigation from the court but were rejected. The case ended with the acquittal of suspects, and in the justified ruling it has been stated that it has not been possible to identify who has carried out the massacre. The case file is at the moment in examination at the Court of Cassation. |
(RT/PE)
