Ferhat Işık, from Van, was doing his military service in the Gülyazı (Bejê) military post in the Uludere district of Şırnak. His corpse was sent to his family, who were told that their son had committed suicide. The family of Işık, however, say that their child was executed by his commander with whom he had previously had an argument.

Ferhat Işık, a Kurdish soldier, who was doing his military service in the Gülyazı (Bejê) military post in the Uludere district of Şırnak, was alleged to have committed suicide while he was on guard duty on 29 October. Following the autopsy in Amed, his body was taken to the Van Provincial Research Hospital to be handed over to his family. Hearing about the incident, hundreds of people, including HDP Van deputy Özdal Üçer as well as DBP executives gathered in front of the hospital.

The military authorities alleged that Işık committed suicide while on guard duty by shooting himself in the chest in the toilet. But the family who saw the body say that there are traces on his face showing that he was beaten and that some of his teeth were broken. Despite the fact that two autopsies were carried out, first by the prosecutor’s office of Uludere, and later in the military hospital in Amed, the reports of the autopsies were not handed over to the family. The cause of death was declared to be “dying as a result of committing suicide with a firearm”.  

The father, İhsan Işık, holds the military authorities responsible for the death of his son. He told that they went to see their son together with his wife on Sunday and that their son had told them that his commander was oppressing him.

The father said his son had a disagreement with his commander because of a guard duty that he was assigned by the commander in an unjust way. He added that he had called his son several days after he returned to Van and that his son said on the telephone: “the commander wants to send me to the base region, but when I told him that I would not accept it, he said to me: ‘If you do not do what I ask you to do, I will order you to do the most awful things’”.

The father said he had called the Military Post Command after the telephone conversation with his son but that he did not receive a positive reply. Işık added that he does not believe that his son committed suicide, and that his commander was responsible for his death.