On 20 July 2015, 33 mainly young people were killed by an ISIS suicide bomb attack under police surveillance, and 104 others were injured, some seriously.

The attack in the Suruç district of Urfa occurred when around 300 volunteers had gathered at the Amara cultural center at the request of the Federation of Socialist Youth Associations (SGDF) to hold a press conference before leaving for Kobanê. The planned trip to northern Syria was intended to be an act of solidarity. The young people wanted to bring toys and humanitarian aid to the city destroyed by ISIS.

One and a half months before that attack, on 5 June, another attack targeted an HDP rally in Diyarbakır, and many of our people were killed in this attack carried out by paramilitary groups.

The trial

The only defendant who was under arrest in the Suruç massacre case has been sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment 34 times, as well as 1,890 years in prison.

The 21st and final hearing of the case was held on 22 October  2022 at the Urfa 5th Heavy Penal Court.

The court sentenced Yakup Şahin to aggravated life imprisonment 34 times for "attempting to overthrow the constitutional order," "being a member of an armed terrorist organization," "murder by premeditation or bombing."

The defendant was separately sentenced to 1,890 years in prison for attempting to commit this crime. He was also sentenced to 10 years in prison and fined 40,000 lira for possessing explosives.

The court also ruled that the fugitive defendants İlhami Bali and Deniz Büyükçelebi should be separated.