14 September 2006
Ogulsapar Muradova
Other non-natural
Family members say they were notified by security officials of the death in custody of RFE/RL [US Government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] Turkmen Service correspondent Ogulsapar Muradova.
One of Muradova's relatives in Ashgabat, who did not want to be named for safety reasons, said security officials contacted family members and took them to the morgue to identify the body. However, the relative said Muradova's family refused to sign a discharge form and left.
The Turkmen Helsinki Foundation (THF) quotes Muradova's children as saying the body has marks on the neck and has a "large wound" on the head. The time and circumstances of Muradova's death are unclear. It is also not known in which prison she was held.
Muradova was detained in mid-June along with several human rights activists. Authorities gave no reason for the arrests at the time.
