18 women appear in court for participating in demonstration against withdrawal from Istanbul Convention
Eighteen women had their first court hearing today in Turkey's Izmir province for participating in an August 2020 demonstration against government plans to withdraw...
COMMENTARY – ISIL and al-Qaeda booksellers are thriving in Erdoğan’s Turkey
By Abdullah Bozkurt
An al-Qaeda-linked bookstore owner in Istanbul who has been selling jihadist books to Turks continues to operate without many obstacles despite a...
X blocked access to 126 accounts in Turkey: rights watchdog
Social media platform X blocked access to 126 accounts following the February 5 ruling of an Ankara judge that cited the need for “protection...
Watchdogs call on Turkish authorities to ensure all charges against Human Rights Association co-chair...
Human rights watchdogs on Monday called on Turkish authorities to ensure that all charges against Öztürk Türkdoğan, co-chair of Turkey's oldest human rights group,...
European rights court rules Turkey violated church group’s freedoms
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled that Turkey violated the right to freedom of association by refusing to recognizing a religious...
Press Freedom in Turkey: 2024 in Review
Press freedom in Turkey deteriorated further in 2024, with journalist associations calling it “a lost year” for press freedom. Turkish journalist groups warned that press...
Healthcare workers, teachers detained over alleged Gülen links
Nine healthcare workers and teachers have been detained in the southern province of Adana due to their alleged links to the Gülen movement, the...
15-year sentences sought for lawyers on terrorism charges
A public prosecutor has sought a prison sentence of 15 years for each of 33 lawyers on charges of membership in a terrorist organization...
Kurdish journalist gets suspended sentence for social media posts
A Turkish court has handed down a suspended sentence of one year, six months to journalist Mahmut Altıntaş on conviction of “spreading terrorist propaganda”...
Court says killing of Kurdish student by police officer in SE Turkey was ‘legal’
A regional appeals court has ruled that no charges can be leveled against a police officer who shot a Kurdish university student to death...
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...