A court has sentenced three former municipal officials to 10 years in prison for their role in the collapse of the İsias Hotel in the Adıyaman city during the Feb 2023 earthquakes, which killed 72 people.
The Adıyaman 1st Heavy Penal Court yesterday found former Zoning Director Mehmet Salih Alkayış, Permit Office Chief Bilal Balcı, and former Deputy Mayor Osman Bulut guilty of “causing multiple deaths and injuries through conscious negligence.”
The three people were also placed under judicial control, including a ban on traveling abroad until the final judgment. The court acquitted three other defendants, including Yusuf Gül, who served as zoning director when the hotel’s original construction permit was approved in 1993.
The Feb 6 quakes, centered in Maraş, devastated 11 provinces across Turkey and parts of northern Syria, killing more than 50,000 people.
Conscious negligence or probable intent?
The Adıyaman Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office charged six public officials in connection with the collapse. The indictment named Yusuf Gül, who approved the hotel’s original 1993 permit, and Mehmet Salih Alkayış, who signed the 2001 renovation permit. Other defendants included Permit Office Chief Bilal Balcı, Deputy Mayor Osman Bulut, a construction inspector, and a technician.
Prosecutors sought convictions for “conscious negligence,” but families of the victims demanded a more severe charge of “probable intent,” arguing that officials knowingly ignored serious risks.
Several family members of the deceased people delivered statements during the trial, urging the court to reconsider the legal classification of the crime.
“I hope you will deliver justice for our children,” said Şenay Atakan Konuklu, who lost her child in the collapse.
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“Justice will only be served if you acknowledge probable intent. Your own legal books say so,” said Murat Aktuğralı.
Feriha Yiğittürk called for those “who signed off on this unlawful construction” to be tried for probable intent, while Abdullah İş criticized the prosecution’s inconsistent stance: “The prosecutor highlighted negligence throughout, but now seeks a conscious negligence charge. The defendants must be tried for probable intent.”
“We want a rational explanation,” said Mehmet Tülek. “We are demanding a lawful trial.”
Esra Özberkman said, “You give us the right to speak, but are you really listening? After listing so many violations, how can you still ask for a conscious negligence ruling? We want probable intent.”
Defense attorney Mehmet Eren Turan argued that the defendants’ actions had been classified without fully clarifying the extent of their fault. He pointed out that the hotel exceeded height limits with its 27-meter structure, a fact supported by official records, yet authorities failed to take corrective action.
Court rejects reevaluation request
One defense attorney claimed that his client, Abdurrahman Karaaslan, was a clerk with no training or authority in construction oversight. He argued that the charges should fall under “misuse of public office,” not “conscious negligence.”
However, the court rejected the request to reevaluate the case or commission a new expert report, stating that the current evidence was sufficient to issue a ruling.
‘Inconsistent with scientific reports’
Before the hearing, members of the Champion Angels Association and the Justice for Guides Platform gathered outside the Adıyaman courthouse. Ruşen Yücesoylu Karakaya, president of the association and mother of 14-year-old victim Selin, said the prosecutor’s opinion marked “a new and critical threshold” in the quest for justice.
“This opinion contradicts the scientific reports, technical findings, and clear legal violations already present in the case file,” she said.
‘We are here for justice’
Karakaya argued that framing the officials’ conduct as conscious negligence fails to reflect the reality of what happened.
“These individuals ignored known violations, enabled unlawful construction, and allowed a life-threatening structure to continue operating,” she said. “We made a promise to our champion angels and our guides. This fight will continue until the legal classification reflects the truth, probable intent is acknowledged, and all responsible parties receive just punishment.”
She added, “We are here for justice and will remain here until our last breath.”
Cypriot officials attend hearing
The trial was attended by Ünal Üstel, Prime Minister of the Northern Cyprus, and Sıla Usar İncirli, leader of the Republican Turkish Party (CTP).
“We have not forgotten our champion angels, and we never will,” said Üstel. “We promised them justice. That’s why we have been in Adıyaman since the first day of the earthquake and will remain here to pursue their rights. Let justice be served.”
The İsias Hotel collapsed during the Feb 6 earthquakes, killing 72 people, including students, coaches, and tour guides visiting from the Northern Cyprus for a sports tournament. There were a total of 39 people, including 24 minor volleyball players, five teachers, and six parents in the group that had come from Northern Cyprus.
A separate case is being heard at the same court against six public officials charged with “causing death and injury by negligence,” relating to the hotel’s original 1993 permit and a 2001 construction update. (AB/VK)
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