UN report details massive destruction and serious rights violations since July 2015 in southeast Turkey
GENEVA (10 March 2017) – The UN Human Rights Office on Friday published a report detailing allegations of massive
destruction, killings and numerous other serious human rights violations committed between July 2015 and December 2016
in southeast Turkey, during Government security operations that have affected more than 30 towns and neighbourhoods and
displaced between 335,000 and half a million people, mostly of Kurdish origin.
The report describes the extent of the destruction in the town of Nusaybin, in Mardin Province, where 1,786 buildings
appear to have been destroyed or damaged, and the Sur district of Diyarbakir, where the local government estimates that
70 percent of the buildings in the eastern part of the district were systematically destroyed by shelling. The
destruction apparently continued even after the security operations ended, reaching a peak during the month of August
2016. Before-and-after satellite images from Nusaybin and Sur show entire neighbourhoods razed to the ground.
The UN Human Rights Office is “particularly alarmed about the results of satellite imagery analysis, which indicate an
enormous scale of destruction of the housing stock by heavy weaponry,” the report states.
Heavy damage is also reported from a number of other towns, including Cizre, in Şirnak Province, where witnesses and
family members of victims “painted an apocalyptic picture of the wholesale destruction of neighbourhoods” where, in
early 2016, up to 189 men, women and children were trapped for weeks in basements without water, food, medical attention
and power before being killed by fire, induced by shelling.
“The subsequent demolition of the buildings destroyed evidence and has therefore largely prevented the basic
identification and tracing of mortal remains,” the report continues. “Moreover, instead of opening an investigation into
the circumstances surrounding the reported excessive use of force, recourse to heavy weapons and the resulting deaths,
the local authorities accused the people killed of participating in terrorist organizations and took repressive measures
affecting members of their families.”
The report describes how one woman’s family “was invited by the public prosecutor to collect her remains, which
consisted of three small pieces of charred flesh, identified by means of a DNA match. The family did not receive an
explanation as to how she was killed nor a forensic report. The victim’s sister, who called for accountability of those
responsible for her death and attempted to pursue a legal process, was charged with terrorist offences.”
The report also cited information received from the Government of Turkey indicating that the Kurdistan Workers Party
(PKK), which the Government considers a terrorist organization, “had conducted a number of violent attacks that caused
deaths and injuries among Turkish security forces and other individuals. The PKK has also been involved, according to
the Government, in kidnappings, including of children; digging trenches and placing roadblocks in cities and towns; and
preventing medical services from delivering emergency health services.”
The UN Human Rights Office says it has been seeking access to the affected parts of southeast Turkey for almost a year,
to independently investigate allegations of serious human rights violations. In the absence of meaningful access, the
report – the first in a series – was produced through remote monitoring, using both public and confidential sources,
satellite imagery and interviews to gather information about the conduct and impact of the security operations in the
southeast of the country.
The report also documents accounts of torture, enforced disappearances, incitement to hatred, prevention of access to
emergency medical care, food, water and livelihoods, and violence against women, as well as expressing concern “about
the post-security operation policies of expropriation,” citing a number of examples including the Council of Ministers’
March 2016 decision, which reportedly resulted in the expropriation of up to 100 per cent of all land plots in Sur.
Measures taken under the state of emergency following the attempted coup of July 2016, including the dismissal of more
than 100,000 people from public or private sector jobs during the reporting period, have also deeply affected the human
rights situation in the southeast. Some 10,000 teachers were reportedly dismissed on suspicion of having links with the
PKK, without due process. The use of counter-terrorism legislation to remove democratically elected officials of Kurdish
origin, the severe harassment of independent journalists, the closure of independent and Kurdish language media and
citizen’s associations and the mass suspension of judges and prosecutors have also severely weakened checks and balances
and human rights protections.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein acknowledged the complex challenges Turkey has faced in
addressing the attempted coup of July 2016 and in responding to a series of terror attacks. However, he said the
apparent significant deterioration of the human rights situation in the country is cause for alarm and would only serve
to deepen tensions and foster instability.
“I am particularly concerned by reports that no credible investigation has been conducted into hundreds of alleged
unlawful killings, including women and children over a period of 13 months between late July 2015 and the end of August
of 2016. It appears that not a single suspect was apprehended and not a single individual was prosecuted,” High
Commissioner Zeid said.
“The Government of Turkey has failed to grant us access, but has contested the veracity of the very serious allegations
made in this report. But the gravity of the allegations, the scale of the destruction and the displacement of more than
355,000 people mean that an independent investigation is both urgent and essential.”
ENDS