Kurkut was a university student and was murdered by the police during the Newroz celebration in Amed in 2017.

The murder suspect of university student Kemal Kurkut, police officer Y.Ş. was acquitted.

The court board, decided to acquit the defendant Y.Ş. and file a criminal complaint against 72 policemen in order to identify the possible suspect.

The 12th hearing of the trial on the murder of Kemal Kurkut, who was killed by the police during the Newroz celebration in Amed 2017, was held at Diyarbakır 7th High Criminal Court.

Police officer Y.Ş. was facing a sentence of three to nine years in prison for “deliberately causing death by negligence”.

Kemal Kurkut lost his life after been shot by police during the 2017 Newroz celebrations in Amed. Issuing a statement after his death, the Diyarbakır Governorship had announced that Kurkut was shot “on suspicion that it was a suicide bomber”.

The day after the incident, Dihaber published images of the incident and police officers Y. Ş. and O.M. were detained. O.M. was released by the prosecutor as it was established that the bullets that caused Kurkut’s death came from the gun of police officer Y.Ş.

The police officer, however, was released by the Criminal Judge of Peace “on condition of judicial control”.

Y.Ş. was initially suspended within the scope of the administrative investigation launched into Kemal Kurkut’s murder, he was reinstated after three months. The indictment demanded police officer Y.Ş. be sentenced to life imprisonment for the killing.

The first hearing of the case was held on 14 December 2017. Y.Ş. appeared before the judge for the first time nine months after the murder. During the trial, the request for the arrest of Y.Ş. has been constantly rejected.