01.05.2026 00:47
Veysi Özsoy, who lost his nephew and whose son was injured in the dog horror in Saray district of Van, said that half an hour after saving his injured son, they learned that his 5-year-old nephew had died in the same attack.
Veysi Özsoy, who lost his nephew and whose son was injured in the horrifying dog attack in the Saray district of Van, said they learned half an hour after he rescued his son alive that his 5-year-old nephew had died in the same attack.
Developments are unfolding after the dog attack in Kazım Paşa neighborhood of Saray district yesterday afternoon, which plunged all of Turkey into mourning. 5-year-old Hamza Özsoy, who lost his life in the attack, was laid to rest amid tears in the district cemetery this morning, while the Özsoy family has begun receiving condolences. Veysi Özsoy, who jumped among the dogs to save the children at the moment of the incident, recounted their nightmare.
"13 DOGS HAD SURROUNDED THE CHILD AND WERE RIPPING HIM APART"
Veysi Özsoy, who said he rushed outside upon hearing shouts while sitting at home at the time of the incident, stated he was shocked by what he saw. Özsoy said, "I am the uncle of the deceased child and the father of the injured one. Yesterday around 2:00-2:30 PM, while sitting at home, I heard shouting. I rushed outside; my wife said 'a dog has eaten the child.' I arrived; nearly 13 dogs had surrounded the child and were tearing him apart. While I was rescuing the child, I was injured in two places. The dogs attacked me too, on my arm and my groin."
"WE DIDN'T KNOW THE OTHER CHILD HAD DIED"
The grieving uncle, expressing that while trying to rescue his own son from the dogs and get him to the hospital, they were unaware that his nephew Hamza had also been attacked, said, "While we were trying to get the child to the hospital, we didn't know the other child had died. They took the child from outside and dragged him away, strangling him near the military base. Half an hour after the incident, we found the other child's body."
"THE DOGS HAD SLIT HIS THROAT AND EATEN HIS FINGERS"
Özsoy, stating that the two children were attacked at different locations, described the extent of the horror with these words:
"Ayaz, that is the injured child; they dragged him from in front of my door down the street. While we were at the hospital, there was an outcry; our commissioner was with us. I said, 'It must be ours.' When they said a child was missing, as I went to the area, I saw the father carrying the child's body. The dogs had completely slit his throat and eaten his fingers." Treatment continues at the hospital for 10-year-old A.Ö., who was injured in the attack, while a wide-ranging investigation into the incident is ongoing.