UN committee to review Turkey’s record on torture and ill-treatment
The United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT) is set this week to review Turkey’s record of torture and ill-treatment amid growing concerns from human...
Syrian refugee’s health in peril due to bureaucratic barriers in Turkey
A Syrian refugee in Turkey was temporarily denied critical HIV treatment due to bureaucratic hurdles, sparking concerns about human rights violations and public health...
Turkish gov’t misuses ECtHR decision to justify routine strip-searches: UN rapporteur
The Turkish government misused a European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) decision to justify routine strip-searches in prisons, a UN rapporteur revealed during a...
Top judge secured release of detainees in exchange for bribes: secret witness
A secret witness has made allegations of bribery involving a high-ranking Turkish judge, claiming detainees were released in exchange for large sums of money,...
Former AKP mayor of Kurdish city arrested on bribery charges
A former mayor from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) who replaced a democratically elected district mayor in Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish southeast in...
Turkey bans access to social storytelling platform Wattpad
Turkey has become the first country to impose a ban on access to Wattpad, a popular digital publishing platform with over 90 million monthly...
Worker held captive and brutally mistreated by employers desperately seeks justice
Vedat Kurt, a 22-year-old man who was allegedly taken prisoner and tortured by his employers after complaining about his unpaid wages, has called on...
Far-right leader faces 7-year sentence for offering condolences over intel officers’ deaths
Ümit Özdağ, leader of the far-right and anti-refugee Victory Party (ZP), is facing a potential prison sentence of up to seven years following charges...
Turkish gov’t seized 232 Gülen-linked schools in 21 countries since coup attempt
A total of 232 schools run by the faith-based Gülen movement across 21 countries have been taken over by the Turkish government since a...
Turkey’s poverty line nears $2,000, quadruple the minimum wage
Turkey’s poverty line has risen to 65,874 lira ($1,993), as millions in the country struggle to make ends meet on a minimum wage of...
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...