Incident

Kurdish Journalist Killed in Southeast Turkey

Cause of death

Shooting

Details

The Kurdish Center of PEN International announced in a statement sent to NRT that the chief editor of the Kurdish-language daily Azadiya Welat, Rohat Aktas, was killed in Cizre on Wednesday (Feb. 24). According to PEN International, he was killed by Turkish forces in the town of Cizre. PEN International sent a separate statement to NRT expressing concern over the death of Aktas in Cizre and urged authorities to investigate the killing of the chief editor. “PEN International is deeply saddened and disturbed to learn of the death of Rohat Aktas, editor and journalist for the Kurdish-language daily Azadiya Welat.  He was killed while reporting from Cizre in Sirnak Province in the southeast of Turkey,” the statement read. In a statement sent to NRT, PEN International described their organization stating, “PEN International promotes literature and freedom of expression. Founded in 1921, PEN International connects an international community of writers from its Secretariat in London. It is a non-political organization which holds Special Consultative Status at the UN and Associate Status at UNESCO.” According to PEN International, Aktas went to Cizre to report on the 24-hour curfew imposed there by Turkish authorities.  He was trapped in a basement with several others after he was shot in the arm.  Salil Tripathi, the Writers in Prisons Committee Chair for PEN International wrote a response to the death of Aktas as part of the statement sent to NRT. He explained, “Rohat Aktas died while trying to tell the world about the plight of wounded civilians with little or no access to medical care in Cizre. Freedom of expression plays an invaluable role, particularly in times of conflict, to allow us to understand what is happening. We call on the Turkish authorities to conduct a swift, transparent and thorough investigation into the death of Rohat Aktas and urge the government in Ankara to look for a peaceful and diplomatic solution to the conflict in southeast Turkey.” The southeastern towns of Cizre and Silopi, bordering Iraq and Syria, and the historical district of Sur in Diyarbakir province have been under a round-the-clock curfew since December 14, 2015. Thousands of people have left their homes in the towns. Residents complain of indiscriminate operations and say the curfews have even prevented people in need of medical care from getting to hospital.