UN human rights chief calls for freeing of political prisoners amid coronavirus pandemic
While the Turkish government has excluded political prisoners from a recently proposed amnesty bill, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet called on...
Coronavirus pandemic fuels hate speech in Turkey
The coronavirus pandemic has fueled hate and xenophobic speech in the predominantly pro-government Turkish media, which accuses the usually targeted groups and countries including...
Report reveals inmates in Turkish prisons not protected against coronavirus
A report drafted by the Jurists for Freedom Association (ÖHD) has revealed that inmates in Turkey’s overcrowded prisons are at high risk of contracting...
Turkey has detained 64 social media users over coronavirus posts: ministry
Turkey has detained 64 people for sharing “unfounded and provocative” posts on social media about the deadly coronavirus outbreak since March 11, according to...
Turkish gov’t refuses to release inmates despite detection of coronavirus in overcrowded prisons
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s Islamist government has rejected calls from human rights organizations to release inmates from two overcrowded prisons despite detection in those...
US State Department maps out Turkey’s human rights abuses
The US State Department on March 11 issued its 2019 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices on Turkey in which it took stock of...
At least 15,557 women murdered in Turkey since start of AKP rule: report
Violence against women has dramatically increased since the Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power in 2002, and at least 15,557 women have...
Another journalist arrested for revealing information about intel officer killed in Libya
Murat Ağırel, a journalist from the ultranationalist Yeniçağ daily, has been arrested for revealing information about a Turkish intelligence officer slain in Libya, according...
80 university students detained over Gülen links subjected to torture: report
Eighty university students who were detained in police operations on the morning of Feb. 28 due to their alleged links to the Gülen movement...
Turkey remains ‘not free’ according to Freedom House annual report
Turkey remains in the “not free” category in the “Freedom in the World 2020” report published by the Washington-based Freedom House on Wednesday.
Freedom House...
Latest Reports
Human Rights in Turkey: 2025 in Review
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This report highlights the most important developments in the area of human rights in Turkey in 2025, a year marked by continued democratic...
Weaponized Diplomacy: How Erdoğan Uses Turkish Missions for Transnational Repression
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This report reveals how the Turkish government has transformed its embassies and consulates into instruments of repression over the past decade. Once seen...
The Forgotten Victims: Children of Turkey’s Post-Coup Purge
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This report examines how children from families targeted in Turkey’s unprecedented post-coup purge have endured the devastating consequences of persecution, social exclusion and...
Human Rights in Turkey: 2024 in Review
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This report highlights the most important developments in the area of human rights in Turkey during the year 2024.
Throughout the year Turkey continued...
Dehumanizing a Legacy: How Fethullah Gülen’s Death Triggered a Campaign of Hate Speech in...
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This report examines the surge of hate speech following the death of Fethullah Gülen, a US-based cleric whose followers have been systematically persecuted...
Family Punishment in Turkey: How Erdoğan Uses the Nazi Practice of Sippenhaft
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This report focuses on how the Turkish government, under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has used family punishment against his opponents.
Sippenhaft, also known as...
Human Rights in Turkey: 2023 in Review
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This report highlights the most important developments in the area of human rights in Turkey during the year 2023.
The May 2023 re-election of...
Hate speech and hate crimes against Syrian refugees in Turkey
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This report focuses on the inflammatory rhetoric and illegal acts motivated by prejudice faced by refugees who fled the civil war in Syria...