Human rights violations in Cizre, where the curfew is partially lifted, is being brought to the International Criminal Court. Attorney Sertaç Özkan from Şırnak Bar Association witnessed many of the human rights violations that occurred during the curfew in Cizre. He called upon the families that were affected by the attacks to apply to the Law Commission set up in the Bar Association.

The Law Commission set up in Cizre continues to work towards identifying the losses of life and property in the district in the aftermath of state forces’ destruction and massacre. The state has arrested hundreds of people from Cizre through the use of ‘secret witness accounts,’ and attorney Sertaç Özkan criticized the secretive and illegal nature of these arrests. Özkan stated that they were unable to reach tens of people in Cizre, and noted that the 90 days-long curfew was in breach of Turkish and international laws. The attorney noted that the bodies of many people killed in Cizre have not yet been identified, and the lawyers had a list of people massacred in the town but not the list of people currently under state custody.

Attorney Sertaç Özkan criticized the use of ‘secret witness accounts’ in the persecution of civilians for ‘being a member of a terrorist organization,’ and said that these arrests lacked any legal basis.

Özkan recalled the ECHR measure for the civilians massacred in the basements of savagery and said that Turkey failed fulfill any of its responsibilities on this issue. Özkan emphasized that they would apply to the International Criminal Court on the massacre of civilians in Cizre basements, and seek compensation from the state for the rights violations it has committed.

Lastly, Özkan noted that law has been suspended in Cizre, and called upon the residents of the district that were affected by the attacks to apply to the Law Commission set up in the Bar Association.