A shooting took place in Istanbul that ended with the deaths
of a Turkish prosecutor, Mehmet Selim Kiraz, as well as the
two gunmen who took him hostage. Apparently, Mehmet Selim Kiraz was taken
hostage because he had headed an inquiry into the death of a boy, named Berkin
Elvan, during anti-government protests in 2013. A statement posted online said
that the prosecutor would be killed if their demands were not met. The gunmen
released pictures of the prosecutor with guns held to his head, then live TV
coverage of the hostage was banned for security reasons. Police negotiated with
the gunmen for six hours, but stormed the courthouse after gunshots were heard
coming from the prosecutor’s office. The two gunmen died during the operation
but Mr. Kiraz was badly wounded and later died from his injuries. According to
the Turkish prime minister, the gunmen had posed as lawyers in order to enter
the courthouse. A lawyer said that the gunmen demanded that the police tell them
the names of four security services members who were connected to the death of
Berkin Elvan. Suspected members of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation
Part-Front (DHKP-C) took the prosecutor hostage, who were seeking to avenge the
boy’s death. Turkey, the European Union, and the US considers the DHKP-C a
terrorist group. The group is responsible for a suicide bombing in February of 2013.
The two gunmen entered the courthouse with
no problem. This brings up questions as to how the two managed to get past
security at a main courthouse in Istanbul. Also, the whole reason behind the
hostage crisis was the death of 14 year old Berkin Elvan, who went out to buy
some bread and then spent nine months in a coma before dying after being hit by
a tear gas canister thrown by police. So far, no one has been charged for the
death of the boy. This also brings up questions on police brutality. A possible
outcome of this situation should be increased security and more consequences for police officers, or, they should actually charged for the crimes they commit, in order to avoid situations like these.
Bethany Shaffer
3/31/2015
9:21 p.m.
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