31 Femicides and 21 Suspicious Deaths of Women in January 

The fight to stop femicides in Turkey has been going on for 14 years. As the Platform, since we identified the need in 2010, we have been disclosing femicide data to the public. Instead of explaining how many women have been killed, why, how and by whom, the Ministry of Interior distorts the facts by saying that the data on femicides are incorrectly prepared. It is the duty of the state not only to disclose the reality of femicides and suspicious deaths of women but also to implement concrete solutions to stop femicides. We will continue to fight for the mobilization of all relevant ministries and mechanisms to fulfil this duty. 

6 women were killed on the pretext of wanting to make decisions about their life 

This month, 31 femicides were committed, and 21 women were found suspiciously dead. 6 women were killed on the pretext of wanting to make decisions about their own life, such as wanting a divorce, refusing to reconcile, refusing to marry, or rejecting a relationship, 1 woman was killed on economic pretexts and 1 woman when she protected her mother. The reason behind 23 femicides could not be determined The inability to determine the excuse behind the murder of 23 women is the result of violence against women and femicides being rendered invisible. Unless it is determined by whom and why women were killed, unless a fair trial is conducted and the suspects, defendants and murderers are given deterrent punishments and unless preventive measures are implemented, violence continues to increase in size. 

We would like to share the names of the women, each of whom was a life: 

Femicide data in the month of January, by city: 

By whom were the women killed? 

Of the 31 women killed in January, 11 were killed by the man they were married to, 5 by the man they used to be married to, 3 by the man they were with, 3 by an acquaintance, 3 by a relative, 2 by the man they used to be with, 2 by their father, 1 by her son and 1 by a stranger. This month, 35% of the women who were killed were killed by the man they were married to. 

Women were mostly killed in their homes 

19 of the women were killed at their homes, 7 in the middle of the street, 2 in an entertainment venue, 2 in a public space and 1 in car. 61% of the women killed this month were killed in their homes. 

Women were mostly killed with firearms 

19 of the women killed this month were killed with firearms, 9 with sharp objects, and 2 by strangulation. The weapon which was used to kill 1 woman could not be determined. 61% of the women killed this month were killed with firearms. 

In 11 of the 31 femicides that took place in January, the perpetrators also killed or injured someone else. 

Once again, our data shows that male violence threatens the lives of not only women but also their children, family members, or those who try to intervene and protect them. In Gaziantep, Halil Çağlar went to Yüksel Çağlar’s house, whom he was in the process of divorce, to reconcile. When his reconciliation offer was rejected, he killed Yüksel Çağlar, Yüksel’s sister Adile Oymak and brothers, and seriously injured her 21-year-old daughter Nimet Çağlar. In İzmir, Suzan Ediz was stabbed by the man she used to be with, and the perpetrator also killed Suzan’s daughter Behiye when she screamed for help. This is the result of a culture of impunity and policies that fail to deter perpetrators. Every femicide is the result of the authorities’ attitudes that turn a blind eye to violence instead of protecting the lives of women. Every decision and policy that encourages the perpetrators is complicit in these tragedies. As Women’s Assemblies, we will maintain our stance against this complicity and continue our determination to protect women’s lives, rights and freedoms. 

We will fight for cities where we are liberated! 

As local elections approach in Turkey, women’s political representation reflects a bitter reality far from equality and a serious lack of women candidates. This gender inequality in local governments runs counter to the fundamental values of a democratic society. At a time when inequalities are deepening and the political power is further degrading women’s position in society, candidates for local elections do not mention policies regarding women at all. The role of municipalities in the struggle against gender inequality is crucial. For women’s full emancipation in social, economic and political life, local governments must produce policies sensitive to gender equality. As the authority closest to the people, they are best placed to observe the needs of women in the local, yet they choose to turn their backs on women. Most municipalities in Turkey do not even fulfil their legal obligations towards women. For instance, metropolitan municipalities and municipalities with a population over 100,000 are obliged to open women’s shelters. According to the Municipal Law, there should be at least 248 women’s shelters in Turkey. However, there are only 36 shelters affiliated with municipalities in Turkey. Protection Law No. 6284 emphasizes the importance of shelters as a way to ensure the lives of women who have been subjected to violence or are in danger of it. 

Real change for women must be at the heart of policies and practices, not just in percentages and numbers. Local governments should not ignore the challenges women face in urban life and take proactive steps to address these. The lack of shelters for women fleeing violence is only one reflection of these problems. In this local election period and beyond, municipalities must work towards protecting, liberating, and empowering women. 

Never fear, they will not be able to touch the Civil Code! 

Instead of protecting women and children, the political power is attacking equal citizenship rights. The Ministry of Justice is trying to open our civil rights to discussion by organizing a ‘Civil Code Workshop’. Having opened Protection Law No. 6284 and the right to alimony into discussion, the political power is now trying to bring up issues such as ‘family mediation’. As Women’s Assemblies, we organized our own Civil Code Workshop, and we women, the subject of the issue, discussed our rights against those who attacked it. In our workshop, we discussed the importance of the Civil Code and Protection Law No. 6284, our right to alimony, ‘family mediation’, acceleration of divorces and other rights. Femicides, suspicious deaths of women and violence against women continue to increase. Policies that empower, liberate and protect women are a necessity now more than ever; we do not accept our rights being opened to discussion. All our rights are the achievements of the women’s movement that has been fighting for more than 100 years. We have no intention of giving up any of it. We will not allow reactionary policies to be implemented anywhere, not in education, employment or law. 

In January, reactionary ideas dominated the agenda. Nurettin Yıldız, the head of the Sosyal Doku Vakfı (Social Fabric Foundation), argued that there is no age limit for marriage in Islam and that children can marry. The Ministry of Family and Social Services, which is supposed to prevent child abuse and forced marriages of children, is merely watching. According to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, everyone under the age of 18 is a child. Those who make speeches encouraging forced marriages of children are publicly committing a crime. 

Why do those who are trying to close down our association, which aims to stop femicides, on the pretexts that it stands ‘contrary to public morality and the law’, not take any action against these sects which openly commit crimes by encouraging child abuse? By trying to normalize child abuse, these reactionary people are trying to normalize child abuse and forced marriages of children. Trying to legitimize child marriages using religious texts and tie women’s right to work to their husband’s permission, shouting “long live Sharia” slogans in courtroom corridors, and the increase of conservative content in education all point to the obstacles to women’s equal rights in social, economic and political life. Such reactionary ideas and practices undermine the progress made on gender equality and limit women’s freedoms. As the Women Assemblies and We Will Stop Femicides Platform, we will fight against all kinds of reactionary ideas. We will never give up on our rights, which we won through women’s struggle! 

Case Developments of January 

İsmail Karakoç, who sexually abused a 16-year-old mentally disabled child in Manisa for two years and killed the child afterwards, was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for ‘deliberately murder’ against a child. However, the defendant was released in the interim decision of the Court of Appeal on the grounds that no complaint was filed for sexual abuse. 

The Court of Cassation found the woman who used birth control pills without the knowledge of the man she was married to at fault for violating the obligation of fidelity and acting against the marriage union. 

In Istanbul Yedikule Chest Diseases and Thoracic Surgery Training and Research Hospital, assistant doctor S. E., who had committed ‘aggravated sexual assault’ against nurse H. Z., was acquitted due to lack of conclusive and convincing evidence. 

Suspicious deaths of women should be revealed immediately 

As we have been stating in our reports for a while, there is a very serious increase in the number of suspicious deaths of women presented as suicides or natural deaths and in the number of women who were found suspiciously dead during the pandemic. Unfortunately, shedding light on the suspicious deaths of women can be even more difficult than femicides. It is necessary to reveal whether women were killed, whether they were killed by accident, whether women were killed on the basis of gender (whether it was femicide), whether they committed suicide or whether they were driven to suicide. 

In Afyon, 24-year-old Gaye Solmaz was found shot dead with a rifle in her house. A suspect was detained.  

In Urfa, 24-year-old Hicret Can was found shot dead in the house she lived with M. S., the man she was with, after they had a fight. M. S., who claimed Hicret had shot herself, was detained. 

In Muş, 14-year-old P. A. and 12-year-old Z. T. were found hanging dead in an abandoned building. 

In Antalya, 18-year-old Merve Şevval Elmas, who had been missing for 18 days, was found dead on the beach. 

72-year-old Safinaz Ayten was found battered to death in her house in Eskişehir. The ambulance driver Mehmet U. was arrested. It was learned that Mehmet U., who worked at the same workplace as the man Safinaz was married to, had stolen the key to their house for the purpose of theft. 

What happened regarding women in January? 

In the dormitory of Alanya Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu Sports High School, 16-year-old earthquake survivor sisters were accused of homosexuality and expelled from their dormitory on the pretext of sleeping in the same bed. 

Murat Kurum, the AKP Istanbul mayoral candidate, said, “We will act for the future of Istanbul; this movement will be a women’s movement”. He was applauded by dozens of male supporters standing behind him. 

It was learned that 19-year-old Zelal A., who attempted suicide in September 2023, was subjected to sexual abuse by her older brothers in 2021 and 2022 and that she had attempted suicide three times. 

In Iran, Roya Heshmati was sentenced to a fine and 74 lashes for posting photos with her hair uncovered on her social media account. 

23-year-old Mohammad Ghobadlou, who participated in the Mahsa Amini protests in Iran, was executed despite the Supreme Court ordering a halt to his execution. 

In Afghanistan, the Taliban arrested women who bought birth control. It was learned that the women were released if they signed a document stating that they would not repeat this act in the future.  

The stories of the life struggles of the 31 women killed in January 

In Kocaeli, 46-year-old Arzu Çınar was shot dead with a shotgun in the middle of the street by Yasin Denizedalan, the man she used to be married to. Kadir U., a friend of the perpetrator, was also injured while trying to stop the perpetrator. 

In Kocaeli, Tülay Dağaşan was shot dead with a firearm in the middle of the street by Şefik Karaali, the man she had divorced two years ago. It was learned that the perpetrator had threatened Tülay Dağaşan with death many times before. 

In Ankara, Gülseven D. was stabbed to death in her home by S. D., the man she was married to. 

In Mersin, 41-year-old Serap Biçer, mother of 3 and 7-months pregnant, was stabbed to death with a cleaver by M. B., the man she was married to. After killing Serap, the perpetrator kidnapped her 5-year-old grandchild. It was learned that the perpetrator had been in prison for 20 years for extorting and killing a taxi driver and was released eight months ago. 

In Diyarbakır, 45-year-old Pervin Bal, mother of 2, was killed by being stabbed in 4 places by Necmettin Bal, the man she was married to. 

In Manisa, 34-year-old Özge Gülenyüz was shot dead with a firearm at her workplace by Osman Davras, the man she was with. The perpetrator committed suicide with the same gun. 

In Aydın, 53-year-old pharmacist Şule Karamercan was shot dead with a firearm in the parking lot of a residence building by Aydın Aksakdemir, the man she used to be married to. The perpetrator committed suicide with the same gun. A person who tried to break up the fight was also injured. 

In Bursa, Petek Akçağır, mother of 3, was stabbed to death by Yılmaz Akçağır, the man she was married to. It was learned that the perpetrator killed Petek on the pretext that she was cheating on him and would not let him look at her phone. 

In Istanbul,17-year-old Melek Nur Özgener was shot in the head and killed by 32-year-old Ercan Ş. in the perpetrator’s car. It was learned that the perpetrator had 48 criminal records. 

In Giresun, 52-year-old Şengül Yeşilkaya was strangled to death with a cable in an entertainment venue by İsmail Yılmaz, the man she used to be with. It was learned that 22 years ago, the perpetrator killed the woman he was married to and was released after 21 years of imprisonment. 

In Istanbul, 19-year-old Kader İrgören was shot dead by Ahmet Taşan in a wedding hall. It was learned that the perpetrator killed Kader İrgören on the pretext that she did not accept his marriage proposal. 

In Antalya, Burcu Gezersoy, mother of 3, was stabbed 17 times with a bread knife by Yılmaz Gündüz, the man she was with. 

In Van, Adile Ateş was shot dead by İbrahim Ateş, the man she was married to. It was learned that Adile was married to the perpetrator as a ‘second wife’. 

In Gaziantep, Bahar Karabağ, mother of 2, was shot dead by Eyüp Turan Karabağ, the man she was married to. The perpetrator claimed that he accidentally killed Bahar Karadağ while cleaning the gun. 

In Adana, Fahriye Kaya died 54 days after being shot in the head with a firearm by Nurettin Kaya, her son. The perpetrator had shot Fahriye and Halime Kaya, whom he was married to, in the head and killed Halime. 

In Istanbul, 19-year-old Nazlı Elmas was shot dead with a Uzi submachine gun by Eniz Kurtuluş, the man she was with. The perpetrator claimed that he shot Nazlı Elmas by mistake while ‘joking around’. 

In Sakarya, 46-year-old Nesrin Ünal and her 30-year-old daughter Ayşegül Oğuz were shot dead by İlker Tarık Ünal, the man Nesrin was in the process of divorce. It was learned that the perpetrator, who was a police commissioner, injured his mother during the incident and committed suicide afterwards. 

In Manisa, 24-year-old Melike Akpınar was shot in the head with a firearm by Zübeyir Yıldız, the man she used to be with. It was learned that Melike Akpınar’s father Necati Akpınar had murdered three women before and was sentenced to life imprisonment. 

In Istanbul, Shakhnoza K. was stabbed to death by Mohamad Z. U. The perpetrator, who also stabbed and injured Fatima M., said the incident happened ‘unintentionally’. 

In Mardin, 25-year-old Vatfa Ecevit was stabbed to death by Şiyar Ecevit, the man she was married to, two days after giving birth. 

In İzmir, Levend M. broke into the house of Suzan Ediz, whom he used to be with and stabbed her. Suzan’s daughter, 12-year-old Behiye Ediz, who saw the incident, was stabbed to death by the perpetrator on the pretext of screaming for help. 

In İzmir, Yusuf Yılmaz shot and killed his 4-year-old daughter Linda Yılmaz and Linda’s 61-year-old grandmother Dilek Uzelli and seriously injured Associate Prof. Dr. Derya Uzelli Yılmaz, whom he was in the process of divorcing. The perpetrator committed suicide with the same gun. Four unlicensed guns were found on the perpetrator. 

It was revealed that 26-year-old Zeynep Ece Aksay was killed in her house in Antalya and buried in a field by Zeynel Boyacı, her relative. Zeynep’s family had reported her missing on August 13th 2023. 

In Istanbul, Muradiye A., mother of 4, was stabbed to death in the middle of the street by Ömer Avşar, the man she used to be married to. The perpetrator committed suicide. 

In Ankara, 44-year-old Ayşegül Çınar was shot dead by M. A., the man she used to be with, on the pretext of refusing to reconcile. 

In Zonguldak, 22-year-old Bahar Kanyılmaz was shot dead with a firearm by Tarık Kanyılmaz, the man she was in the process of divorce. It was learned that the perpetrator called Bahar to the street of her house to talk and killed her after an argument. 

In Bursa, 42-year-old Seher Kındaç was strangled to death by Turgay Kındaç, the man she was in the process of divorce. The perpetrator confessed that he committed the murder on the pretext of jealousy. 

In Gaziantep, Halil Çağlar went to the house of Yüksel Çağlar, whom he was in the process of divorce, and killed Yüksel Çağlar, Yüksel’s brothers, and seriously injured her 21-year-old daughter Nimet Çağlar and Yüksel’s sister Adile Oymak, who later died in the hospital. The perpetrator committed suicide after the incident. 

*Our Report: Every month, the news on violence against women in the press includes cases, new incidents and details about the women's movement. We compile the news reflected in the press and the applications that come directly to us, reach a number and prepare our report within this framework. We analyze, compile and evaluate our Femicide Report according to the concept of femicide. In other words, the conceptualization of femicide is; “the killing or forcing into suicide of individuals of the female gender, from embryo to fetus, infant to child, adult to elderly, by a man, simply because of their gender or on the pretext of their actions contrary to the gender stereotypes. and the perception of gender identity. Femicides should not be perceived sorely as murders in which people of the female gender are killed. In these murders committed with hatred, what is attacked is the female identity itself”