We Will Stop Femicides Platform May 2025 Report
21 Femicides and 20 Suspicious Deaths of Women in May
The fight to stop femicides in Turkey has been going on for 15 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.
The reason behind 9 femicides could not be determined
This month, 21 femicides were committed, and 20 women were found suspiciously dead. 7 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, and 5 women were killed on economic pretexts. The reason behind 9 of the 21 femicides could not be determined. The inability to determine the excuse behind the murder of 9 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 May, by city:
By whom were the women killed?
Of the 21 women killed in May, 5 were killed by a relative, 4 by the man they were married to, 4 by the man they used to be married to, 3 by an acquaintance, 2 by the man they were with, 1 by the man she used to be with, 1 by her son and 1 by a stranger. This month, 24% of the women who were killed were killed by a relative.
Women were mostly killed in their homes
13 of the women were killed at their homes, 3 in the middle of the street, 2 at their workplace and 2 in a public space. It could not be determined where 1 woman was killed. 62% of the women killed this month were killed in their homes.
Women were mostly killed with firearms
13 of the women killed this month were killed with firearms, 5 with sharp objects, 2 by strangulation and 1 by being beaten to death. 62% of the women killed this month were killed with firearms.
Misogyny Disguised as the ‘Year of the Family’
The ‘Year of the Family’ declared in 2024 is not only an expression of the state's ideological orientations centering on the family; it has also become part of a comprehensive social engineering move targeting the lives of women, LGBTQI+, and all marginalized groups. Throughout this year, all the ideological apparatuses of the government clearly revealed their intention to uniformize society under the name of ‘family’ and to establish an even more authoritarian control over women's bodies and labor.
President Erdoğan's recent statement describing abortion as murder has once again revealed the harshest and most misogynistic face of this political orientation. This open attack on women's reproductive rights express not only the desire to establish absolute control over women's bodies, but also reinforces the conservative family ideal that defines women solely as mothers and wives. Women's life, health, and right to make decisions are being ignored; fertility is trying to be turned into a ‘state issue’. This ideological siege has not remained merely at the level of discourse: with a letter sent by the Ministry of Family and Social Services to public institutions, concepts such as ‘gender’, ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’ were explicitly removed from official documents and programs.
As the We Will Stop Femicides Platform, we know that a structure that does not protect women, prevent violence, or keep children safe from abuse is not a ‘family’; it is an ideological apparatus that has become the institutional ground for patriarchal violence. The real purpose of the policies carried out under the name of ‘family’ today is not to liberate women, but to force them to obey and serve, and to remove them from the public sphere.
Just in May alone at least 14 women and in 2025 so far, at least 86 women were killed by their family members. These numbers show once again that ‘family’ is not always a safe place and is often a source of violence for women.
We are not remaining silent against this darkness. Together with the Federation of Young Feminists, we organized protests in front of the Ministry of Family in many cities, including Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir, and Eskişehir. By putting the photos of women who were killed within their families on the banners made by the Ministry with the caption ‘Souvenir from the Year of the Family’, we exposed, with a striking irony, how the family structure that the government sanctifies is actually a ground for violence.
Our Struggle for Freedom is Everywhere!
On the 12th anniversary of the Gezi Park Resistance, we were once again in the squares. In İzmir, Beyazıt, Silivri, Pendik, and Esenler, we stood up for the will of the people. Against bans, oppression, and injustice, we were out in the streets. In Ankara, we gathered in front of the Constitutional Court for animal rights. We demanded a fair and effective law for animal’s right to life.
We defend a free and equal life everywhere, in every field, for every identity. We are not leaving the squares. Our organized struggle continues. For freedom, for life, all together!
In the case of Yeşim Akbaş, who was found shot with a pistol in a police lodging in Manisa, the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office of the Court of Cassation requested the reversal of the acquittal verdict against deputy commissioner Doğan Can Yıldız on the grounds that the death of Yeşim Akbaş was not a suicide but murder. If the decision is overturned, Yıldız will be tried again.
The court ruled that the 10.3 centimeter long knife that led to the death of Mattia Ahmet Minguzzi was “not an instrument of crime”.
In Diyarbakır, Seda E. requested a restraining order against H. E., the man she was in the process of divorce, and H. E. was placed under house arrest in the house allocated for Seda to live with her daughter. Seda then started living with her family.
Lawyers Gülbahar Yılmaz and her husband Ömer Çakırgöz took the application regarding the transfer of a woman's civil registration to her husband's household after marriage to the Constitutional Court.
In the case of Özlem Şımarık, who was murdered in Burdur by Tarık Yılmaz, the man used to be married to, the perpetrator was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment.
In the case of Huriye Özkan, who was stabbed to death by Ömer Teker, the man with whom she was in unofficial religious matrimony, the perpetrator was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment.
In the case of Sibel Ayğan, who was murdered in Aydın by Mustafa Yıldırım, the man she used to be married to, the perpetrator was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment without any reduction.
In the case of Sevda Kuş, who was shot dead in Edirne by police commissioner Ali Yılmaz, the man she had divorced, the perpetrator was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment without any reduction on the charge of ‘intentional murder’.
In the case regarding the death of 33-year-old Duygu Bölükbaş, who was found dead hanging from a towel rail in the bathroom of her house in Bornova, Izmir Heavy Penal Court acquitted the defendant E. T. and her aunt S. T. due to lack of evidence.
What happened regarding women in May?
Minister of National Education Yusuf Tekin targeted coeducation, citing families who do not send their daughters to school as an excuse, and said that girls-only or boys-only schools could be opened.
Students protested an event organized by the Islamic Research Club at Boğaziçi University for Nureddin Yıldız, who legitimizes child abuse and violence against women. 97 people were detained in the protests.
In Konya, it was revealed that the principal of Ahmet Hazım Uluşahin Imam Hatip Secondary School, H. A., did not register 10-year-old E. A., on the pretext that she wasn’t wearing a headscarf. The child's family and Eğitim-İş Union filed a criminal complaint against the principal.
Sexual Violence Increases, Impunity Protects Perpetrators
A lawsuit was filed against Yektacan Özçift, a school principal who abused 15 students at a middle school in Istanbul, demanding up to 219 years in prison for ‘sexual harassment against children in a chain’, ‘sexual abuse against children in a chain’ and ‘obscenity’.
It was revealed that a 9-year-old mentally disabled child who was being treated in intensive care at Çam and Sakura City Hospital was abused. An investigation was launched against 26 people including cleaning staff, health workers and family members.
It was revealed that Mehmet İlyas Demir, a student of Special Education Teaching Department at Eskişehir Osmangazi University, had sexually abused a woman. Women organized a march at the university and demanded that the perpetrator be expelled from the university.
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 Bilecik, 59-year-old Emriye Turan fell to her death from her balcony.
In Istanbul, 19-year-old Deniz Karakaya was found dead at the home of Hayrettin K., the man she was with. It was learned that Hayrettin K. called the police and said, “My girlfriend used drugs and overdosed. I'm leaving the house key on top of the gas box and leaving”, and then fled. An investigation revealed bullet marks and blood in the house. It was learned that the suspect had 11 separate criminal records.
In Ordu, 20-year-old Arzu Ay, mother of one, was found dead under suspicious circumstances. Cihan Ay, the man she was married to, was arrested on charges of ‘abuse of a spouse’ for subjecting Arzu Ay to physical and psychological violence.
In Van, 50-year-old Dilber Artuç, mother of ten children, was found dead under suspicious circumstances in her home.
The stories of the life struggles of the 21 women killed in May
In Yozgat, 60-year-old Kudret Polat was stabbed to death by Yıldıray Okhan, the man her daughter was married to. The perpetrator was arrested.
In İzmir, 20-year-old Aysun Candan was shot dead with a firearm by H. A., the man she allegedly used to be with. H. A. was arrested, while Ş. A. A., who was with him during the incident, was released.
In Ankara, 21-year-old Hatice Çınar was shot dead with a firearm by Murat Açıkgöz, her obsessive neighbor. The perpetrator committed suicide the day after the incident.
In İstanbul, 34-year-old Bahar Aksu was shot dead with a firearm by Rüsten Elibol, the man she used to be married to, during an attempted abduction involving three other people. Bahar had previously filed a complaint against the perpetrator for ‘threats’ and ‘intentional assault’ and had obtained a preventive measure decision. The perpetrators were arrested.
In Adana, 54-year-old Neriman Onur was shot dead with a firearm by Mehmet Ali Nayki, the man she used to be married to. The perpetrator attempted to flee but was caught and arrested.
In Ankara, 65-year-old Adalet Mallı was shot dead with a firearm by Zekai Mallı, the man she was married to. The perpetrator committed suicide after the incident.
In Giresun, 26-year-old Rana Çavuş and 30-year-old Yonca Çavuş were shot dead with a firearm at the school they worked by Abdullah Turan. It was learned that Abdullah Turan was previously convicted. The perpetrator was arrested.
In Osmaniye, 20-year-old Fatma Yılmaz, mother of one, was stabbed to death by Serkan Yılmaz, the man she was married to. The perpetrator was arrested.
In Kütahya, it was revealed that 19-year-old Nagihan Uyğur, who had been missing for a year, was murdered by her uncle Yaşar T. Nagihan's body was found in a well near the perpetrator's house, covered in concrete. It was also learned that Nagihan had been living in the same house with the perpetrator and had been sexually abused by him before her death.
In Osmaniye, 40-year-old Nura Zemzem was beaten and strangled to death by her 21-year-old son Ali M.
In Çanakkale, 25-year-old Zeynep Zan was shot in the head with a firearm and killed in the middle of the street by Uğur Zan, the man she was in the process of divorce.
In Tokat, 34-year-old Safiye D. was shot dead with a firearm by her relative Serkan D. Emrah D., the man she was married to, was also injured during the incident.
In Adana, 23-year-old Şevval Çiftçi was stabbed to death 10 times by Engin Yüce, the man she was with. The perpetrator committed suicide after the incident by jumping from a height.
In Kahramanmaraş, 42-year-old Eser Karaca was shot dead with a shotgun at the hospital she worked by Atilla Ayıntaplı, the man she used to be married to. It was learned that Eser had previously obtained three restraining orders against the perpetrator and had applied for a fourth one the day before she was killed.
In Balıkesir, 23-year-old Dilruba Elif Çetin was stabbed to death by Burak İnci, the man she was with. The perpetrator was arrested. It was learned that Dilruba had previously obtained a restraining order against the perpetrator.
In Adana, 48-year-old Esengül Kaya, mother of three, was shot in the head and killed at her workplace by Recep Çürük, the man she used to be married to, on the pretext that she rejected his reconciliation offer. It was learned that they had divorced due to physical and psychological violence, and that Esengül had obtained a restraining order against the perpetrator because his threats continued after they divorced.
In Konya, 41-year-old Nurhan Öner was stabbed to death by İzzet Öner, the man she was married to, on the pretext of asking for a sofa set.
In Balıkesir, 59-year-old Gülseren Kurtman was murdered by getting hit in the head with an axe by İrfan Çakar, her landlord, on the pretext that she made noise and refused to vacate the house.
In Iğdır, 59-year-old Hatun Çakmakçı and 52-year-old Elmas Çakmakçı were shot dead with a firearm in their home by their brother-in-law Mehmet Çakmakçı, on the pretext that they held different views from him.