İstanbul mayor defiant as interior ministry accuses his staff of terrorist links
A defiant İstanbul mayor on Monday called on the country’s interior minister to resign in the wake of an investigation launched by the ministry...
Prominent law professors challenge Turkey’s Instagram ban at court
Two professors of law who are known for their activism concerning internet freedoms in Turkey have taken a controversial ban on the Instagram social...
Disabled Turkish prisoner allegedly beaten, denied medical care
Two Turkish rights groups have alleged that a disabled prisoner was beaten and denied adequate medical care during and after a visit to a...
Top appeals court upholds acquittal of police officers accused of killing minors during Kurdish...
Turkey’s Supreme Court of Appeals has upheld the acquittal of three police officers accused of killing 8-year-old Enes Ata and 17-year-old Mahsum Mızrak by...
Second issue of SCF’s weekly newsletter is online
“Turkey Human Rights Dispatch” is the Stockholm Center for Freedom’s (SCF) weekly newsletter. Every Wednesday we share with you the latest developments in the field of...
Rights, press groups call for release of journalist jailed for insulting Erdoğan, disinformation
Human rights and press freedom organizations have called on Turkish authorities to immediately release journalist Alican Uludağ, who has been held in pretrial detention...
Turkish gov’t investigates 612,347 people over ‘armed terror organization’ links in 2 years
The Turkish government has launched investigations into a total of 612,347 people across Turkey due to their alleged membership in "armed terrorist organizations" during...
2 teenagers in Turkey face prison sentences for insulting Atatürk, denigrating religious values
Turkish prosecutors have demanded prison terms for a 17-year-old who was arrested last week over a video of him performing a lewd act with...
Turkish journalist fined over report allegedly insulting public official
A court in Istanbul has fined journalist Melisa Gülbaş 7,080 Turkish lira ($220) for allegedly insulting a public official in connection with her reporting,...
Rights groups say Kobani trial aimed at excluding Kurds from political life
Human Rights Watch and the Turkey Human Rights Litigation Support Project have accused Turkey of criminalizing free speech to ensure the arbitrary detention of...
Latest Reports
Human Rights in Turkey: 2025 in Review
Download PDF
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
Download PDF
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
Download PDF
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
Download PDF
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...
Download PDF
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
Download PDF
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
Download PDF
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
Download PDF
This report focuses on the inflammatory rhetoric and illegal acts motivated by prejudice faced by refugees who fled the civil war in Syria...