In October 2025, 19 women were killed by men, and 22 women were found suspiciously dead.

2025 October Report*

19 Femicides and 22 Suspicious Deaths of Women in October

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 11 femicides could not be determined

This month, 19 femicides were committed, and 22 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 1 woman was killed on the pretext that her daughter’s henna ceremony was incomplete. The reason behind 11 of the 19 femicides could not be determined. The inability to determine the excuse behind the murder of 11 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 October, by city:

By whom were the women killed?

Of the 19 women killed in October, 7 were killed by the man they were married to, 6 by the man they used to be married to, 2 by an acquaintance, 1 by the man she was with, 1 by the man she used to be with, 1 by a relative and 1 by a stalker. This month, 37% of the women who were killed were killed by the man they were married to.

Women were mostly killed in their homes

8 of the women were killed at their homes, 6 in the middle of the street, 1 on a waterfront and 1 in a public space. It could not be determined where 2 women were killed. 42% 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 and 1 by strangulation. 68% of the women killed this month were killed with firearms.

Restrict Access to Firearms

Today, a significant proportion of women killed at home, on the street, at work, and on campus are murdered with licensed or unlicensed firearms. Since the beginning of 2025, 58% of femicides have been committed with firearms. In October, 13 women were killed with firearms, in 6 of which the perpetrator used a hunting rifle.

Risk-based disarmament is essential to reverse this situation: men against whom women have obtained protective measures under Law 6284, restraining orders or who have a record of violence against women should not be granted licenses; existing licenses should be immediately suspended and firearms confiscated. A special control regime should be established for service weapons; domestic violence cases involving police, military, and private security personnel should be monitored separately and transparently from an administrative and judicial perspective; the notion that ‘the home is a private space’ should be abandoned. Access to illegal weapons should not be considered a mere detail accompanying the crime, but rather the very constituent element of the crime itself.

The 11^th Judicial Package is an Attack on Identity

The attempt to add Article 93/A to the Turkish Penal Code under the name ‘illegal gender reassignment’ is a clear attempt to drag LGBTQI+ existence into the realm of criminal law. This approach abandons a rights-based framework and shifts to a punitive-moralistic stance: it positions identity as a ‘crime’ and the body as ‘evidence’. It effectively renders the already difficult and bureaucratic gender affirmation processes impossible; it puts pressure on medical ethics and patient rights with the threat of punishment towards doctors; it restricts trans people’s access to healthcare, housing, and justice. The real effect of this approach, presented under the guise of ‘public order’, is to institutionalize a climate of hatred and target the safety of vulnerable groups. Our identity is not a crime. Criminal law exists not to control identity, but to prevent violence and ensure life. Our struggle for an equal and just life for all will continue.

Sexual Violence Increases, Impunity Protects Perpetrators.

 In the trial of H. S., the school bus driver accused of sexually abusing four girls on the school bus in Kastamonu, the defendant was sentenced to a total of 32 years in prison for the crime of ‘sexual abuse of a child’.

In the trial against apartment attendant İbrahim A., who was accused of sexually abusing an 8-year-old girl in Antalya, the defendant was sentenced to 10 years in prison for ‘aggravated sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12’

Case Developments of October

In the trial against Ali Osman Buzlak, who strangled his wife Hatice Agcakale Buzlak to death, the defendant stated that he killed Hatice on the pretext that she had cheated on him. The defendant faces a sentence of aggravated life imprisonment for the crime of ‘intentional killing of a spouse’.

In the trial concerning the murder of 35-year-old Çiğdem E., whose body was found buried in the garden of a house in Konya, the defendant G. S. is being tried for ‘intentional killing of a woman’ and ‘attempted aggravated sexual assault’, while the other three defendants are being tried for ‘destruction of evidence’.

The lawsuit filed against Ozan Güven, the man Deniz Bulutsuz used to be with, for subjecting her to violence has concluded. The court sentenced Güven to 2 years and 3 months in prison for ‘intentional assault’. It was decided that 45 days of the sentence would be served in an open prison.

What happened regarding women in October?

In Istanbul, Bahadır Aslan threw flammable substances at the building where Nevin Demir, the woman he used to be married to, lived and then fled the scene. The resulting fire injured seven people, three of them seriously.
The lawyer for Iranian women’s rights activist Şerife Muhammedi announced that her client's death sentence had been commuted to 30 years in prison.
A Swedish court ruled that 18-year-old migrant Yazied Mohamed, who sexually assaulted 16-year-old Meya Åberg, would not be deported because the assault did not last long!

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 Izmir, 32-year-old Burçin Razak A. lost her life due to a gunshot wound. The man she was married to, who was holding the gun during the incident, claimed the gun went off accidentally.

In Van, 21-year-old Sema Nur Oruç was found dead under suspicious circumstances in her home.

In Istanbul, Necla Özmen died after falling from her apartment building under suspicious circumstances. It was learned that after Necla fell, no ambulance was called, and Abdullah Özmeni, the man she was married to, and his police officer relatives living in the apartment building, took her to a hospital 50 minutes away instead of the one 10 minutes away.

In Istanbul, 62-year-old Ülker Sakarya was found dead with her mouth taped and a scarf tied around her neck.

In Van, Meryem Taşdemir was found dead. It was learned that Meryem had obtained a restraining order against the man she used to be married to due to problems they had been having. Her relatives stated that Meryem had recently expressed her desire to start a new life and that they found the suicide claims suspicious.

In Sivas, 41-year-old H. B. fell to his death from the 7^th floor.

Five months ago, it was alleged that Güler Kaderli had committed suicide in Istanbul. The prosecutor's office claimed that Güler had been thrown from the window by Cihangir Ş., the man she was with, and demanded that he be tried for aggravated life imprisonment.

The stories of the life struggles of the 19 women killed in October

In Izmir, 45-year-old Serpil Güral, mother of two, was stabbed to death by A. G., the man she was in the process of divorce. It was learned that she had obtained a one-month restraining order against the perpetrator on September 22^nd.

In Yalova, 39-year-old Belgin Aslanoğlu was shot in the chest and head with a firearm on the street by Özgür Aslanoğlu, the man she was married to. The perpetrator has not yet been caught.

In Denizli, 42-year-old Keziban Pars Acar was shot dead with a rifle by Tunay Acar, the man she had married six months ago. The perpetrator committed suicide with the same weapon after the incident.

In Çankırı, 40-year-old cleaning worker İlknur Kertlez, mother of two, was stabbed to death by Selami Yılmaz, the man she used to be married to. The perpetrator attempted suicide after the incident, but was discharged from the hospital two days later and arrested.

In Kahramanmaraş, 37-year-old Fatma Görkem was shot dead with a firearm by Hakan Yılmaz, the man she had divorced 7 years ago. The perpetrator also murdered Fatma’s 63-year-old mother Gülistan Görkem, and wounded her 19-year-old stepdaughter Eda Nur Göksu. The perpetrator committed suicide after the incident.

In Kayseri, 39-year-old university student Meliha Keskin, mother of three, was shot dead with a shotgun in front of her university by Ferhat Karakaya, the man she had divorced 5 years ago.

In Istanbul, 42-year-old Nilay Kotan was shot 15 times on the street by Ali K., the man she used to be with, on the pretext that she wanted to end the relationship. Her neighborhood in Çağlayan was under police blockade that day due to a court hearing.

In Bolu, 29-year-old Hilal Baltaş, mother of three, was shot dead with a hunting rifle by Engin Baltaş, the man she was married to. It was learned that he announced the murder on social media.

In Adana, 34-year-old Ebru Kaya was shot dead with a firearm by Tuğrul Kılıç, the man she used to be with, on the pretext that she wanted to end the relationship.

In Kocaeli, 46-year-old Binnur Gökmen was stabbed to death by Ramazan Gökmen, the man she was married to, on the pretext that their daughter’s henna ceremony was incomplete. The perpetrator attempted suicide after the incident.

In Çanakkale, Şerife Akyıldız was shot dead with a firearm at her workplace by Ferdi Akyıldız, the man she used to be married to. The perpetrator was caught.

In Izmir, 69-year-old İzade Teker, who was bedridden, was shot dead with a firearm by R. T., the man she was married to. The perpetrator was arrested.

In Istanbul, 38-year-old Aysel Karakoç was stabbed to death by Fethi Şancı, the man she used to be with.

In Izmir, 25-year-old Gülben Duru, mother of one, was stabbed to death by Asil Çamur, the man she used to be married to. Gülben had applied twice to the police checkpoint next to her child’s school. The perpetrator was arrested.

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In Istanbul, 29-year-old Suzan Elik, mother of three, was shot with a firearm by Yunus Elik, the man she was in the process of divorce. Suzan, who lost her life in the hospital, had a restraining order against the perpetrator. The perpetrator has not yet been caught.

In Zonguldak, Gönül Karakök was shot dead with a firearm by Hüseyin Derin, the father of the man she used to be married to. The perpetrator was arrested.

In Ankara, 35-year-old Muradiye Gökmen, mother of one, was shot dead with a firearm by A. Ş. A., who had been stalking her. The perpetrator, who had an extensive criminal record, was arrested.

In Zonguldak, 17-year-old Hasret Akkuzu was strangled and thrown into a water well by Deniz Boyacı, an acquaintance of her family. The perpetrator, who had an extensive criminal record, was arrested.

*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”