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A Regressing Turkey Faces New Wave Of Suspicious Murders

21.10.2014 09:51

ZEYNEP KARATAŞ/ GÜLTEN ÜSTÜNTAĞ/ / ISTANBULA series of killings that started with the recent Kobani protests in which more than 30 people were killed has gained momentum with a new wave of unsolved murders in Turkey's east, a region known for assassinations allegedly by agents of the deep state, during the 1990s.Within just the last two weeks, four people were murdered in various eastern and southeastern provinces of the country, and an Iranian journalist was killed in a highly suspicious car accident the day after she complained that the Turkish government had accused her of being an agent collecting intelligence for a foreign country. Upon a call from pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) leader Selahattin Demirtaş in early October, many Kurds took to the streets to protest the terrorist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) attack on the Syrian town of Kobani (or Ayn-al Arab). However the demonstrations turned into acts of vandalism occurring across Turkey and were accom

ZEYNEP KARATAŞ/ GÜLTEN ÜSTÜNTAĞ/ / ISTANBUL

A series of killings that started with the recent Kobani protests in which more than 30 people were killed has gained momentum with a new wave of unsolved murders in Turkey's east, a region known for assassinations allegedly by agents of the deep state, during the 1990s.
Within just the last two weeks, four people were murdered in various eastern and southeastern provinces of the country, and an Iranian journalist was killed in a highly suspicious car accident the day after she complained that the Turkish government had accused her of being an agent collecting intelligence for a foreign country.

Upon a call from pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) leader Selahattin Demirtaş in early October, many Kurds took to the streets to protest the terrorist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) attack on the Syrian town of Kobani (or Ayn-al Arab). However the demonstrations turned into acts of vandalism occurring across Turkey and were accompanied by murders committed by unidentified persons or groups.

While the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the Free Cause Party (Hüda-Par), a pro-Kurdish/radical Islamist party that is ideologically aligned with ISIL, were accused of these killings the alarm bell is ringing because of a greater threat, as the dark days of the 1990s in which deep state elements were apparently involved in unsolved murders may have returned with the most recent killings.

In the latest incident, Salih Tekinalp, a former mayor of Şanlıurfa's Suruç district, and his son Sinan Tekinalp were shot and killed in their car by unidentified assailants on Sunday.

Tekinalp's son was driving from the city of Şanlıurfa to Suruç and at 3:45 p.m., while crossing a bridge to get onto the Suruç highway from the Aligör neighborhood, they were shot at from both sides. The former district mayor and his son were both hit by a large number of bullets and their car struck the guard rail.

Speaking with Today's Zaman regarding the recent assassinations and unsolved murders in Turkey's eastern and southeastern regions, Emrullah Beytar, head of the Activist Lawyers Association (AHUD), said the troubling incidents are reminiscent of the 1990s, a period when thousands of people were murdered and the perpetrators never identified.

“That is why hateful language should not be used not to exacerbate the current sensitive political atmosphere. The current conflict in the east is comparable to the dark days of the 1990s. The recent assassinations are a real source of concern. The state should take concrete precautions to identify the perpetrators of these murders. Another dark period should not be allowed or felt by the people of the region; it will cause a loss of trust in the state as there was in the 1990s. So, it falls to the government and the security forces to solve these assassinations. Otherwise, any illegal elements in the region will resort to violent methods to preserve their position or to enhance it,” Beytar warned.

Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed Peoples (MAZLUM-DER) Chairman Halim Yılmaz, speaking to Today's Zaman, also stressed that for more than 15 years there had not been a single unsolved murder.

"If the number [of assassinations] is now so high, we should consider the involvement of deep state elements in these killings. The state and the intelligence units should stay away from any activity that might damage citizens. The state should not kill people as it did in the 1990s so that people do not become afraid and join the terrorist groups," Yılmaz noted.

Journalist accused of espionage killed in car crash

A Lebanese-American journalist died in a car crash after she was accused of espionage by the Turkish government in the Turkish city of Suruç near the Syrian border on Sunday.
Serene Shim, a reporter for the state-owned Iranian TV station Press TV, was killed when the vehicle she was in collided with a heavy cement truck when she was returning to her hotel. Press TV calls this accident “suspicious.”

Furthermore, Shim told Press TV that she had been threatened by the Turkish Intelligence Organization (MİT) on Friday and accused of being a spy. In a video on Press TV's website, Shim said: “I'm very surprised at this accusation. I've even thought of approaching Turkish intelligence because I have nothing to hide and I haven't done anything aside from my job, and I'd like to make that apparent to them. However, I am a bit worried, because as you know, and as the viewers know, Turkey has been labeled by Reporters Without Borders [RSF] as the largest prison for journalists, so I am a bit frightened about what they might use against me.”

Shim had reported occurrences of members of ISIL militants crossing over into Kobani using World Food Organization and other NGO trucks.
According to Beytar, all segments of society and the political authority should use language that does not divide people in terms of their ethnicity, religion or political opinions.

"All steps to enhance the rule of law should be taken immediately. In such a chaotic atmosphere, the deep state elements surface," Beytar added.
When asked about allegations that appeared in the press saying that MİT agents played an active role in some provocative demonstrations, Beytar responded by saying: "Such an option is always possible when the previous state approach on such incidents is considered. The occurrence of such things poses a threat to the peace even today."

Kurdish newspaper deliveryman and tradesman shot dead


A tradesman in the city of Van, Muhammed Latif Şener, (66), was shot in the head on Saturday by unidentified persons while heading home. Although Şener was not a member of Hüda-Par, the party's provincial head Rasim Sayğın said he had lost a close friend, and accused the Patriotic Revolutionist Youth Movement (YDG-H) -- an affiliate of the PKK -- of being behind the murder.

In another incident of murder, deliveryman Kadri Bağdu was shot twice last Tuesday in the city of Adana while distributing his newspapers. Individuals alleged to be supporters of ISIL killed Bağdu, who was delivering the Kurdish Azadiya Welat and Gündem newspapers in southeastern Turkey, according to the HDP Adana branch head Uğur Bayrak.

Yılmaz also highlighted the fact that the government should launch a detailed investigation of the murders, adding: "Such killings deepen the despair among the people. Those illegal structures may resort to the method of unsolved murders in order to take Turkey back to the chaotic atmosphere of the 1990s. This should never be allowed to happen again." (Cihan/Today’s Zaman)



 
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