COMMENTARY — Erdoğan sends an operative as ambassador to the Netherlands
By Abdullah Bozkurt
The appointment of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan confidante and corrupt politician Şaban Dişli as a non-career ambassador to the Netherlands suggests the Turkish...
Three consecutive life sentences sought for prominent journalists on coup charges
An indictment prepared by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office seeks three consecutive life sentences for 16 people including Turkey’s prominent journalists, on coup...
Rights organizations call on Council of Europe to trigger infringement proceedings against Turkey
Human Rights Watch, the International Commission of Jurists and Turkey Litigation Support Project have called on the Council of Europe (CoE) Committee of Ministers...
COMMENTARY — CPJ downplays the number of jailed journalists in Turkey
By Abdullah Bozkurt
Although there are varying figures on the number of jailed journalists and media workers in Turkey from different advocacy groups, one thing...
Student detained for receiving money from relatives abroad, accused of ‘terrorist financing’
Esengül Arslan, a 23-year-old nursing student in Istanbul, has been detained for receiving funds sent by her relatives abroad, which authorities have labeled as...
Mother and son phone conversation reveals Turkish guardians in murder of Kurdish prisoner
A telephone conversation regarding 40-year old Kurdish prisoner in Balıkesir’s Kepsut prison beaten to within an inch of his life has revealed recently that...
Turkish gov’t detains 6 military members over alleged links to Gülen movement
The Turkish government detained six military personnel on Wednesday in six provinces as part of its massive post-coup witch hunt targeting alleged members of...
Overcrowding and inhumane conditions in Turkish prisons, says TIHEK report
A recent visit by the Turkish Human Rights and Equality Institution (TİHEK) to Maltepe L-Type Prison has revealed severe overcrowding and poor living conditions,...
Story of teacher-turned-butcher reveals extent of Turkey’s post-coup purge
The story of Cafer Altıkardeş, a former geography teacher fired from his job by an emergency decree who lost half his index finger while...
Turkey’s TV watchdog fines TV channel for showing Gülen linked book on shelf
Turkey's television watchdog the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) has fined Kanal D TV channel for airing a book linked to faith-based Gülen...
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...