Confession of Torture by the Turkish General Staff
In the official letter sent by the General Staff to the Ankara 24th High Criminal Court, it was revealed that therewas a veiled confession regarding the torture incidents that took place on July 15.
No torture goes unrewarded!
In the aftermath of the July 15, numerous incidents of torture came to light, both in the footage reflected in the media and in testimonies presented during trials. The promotion of figures like Zekai Aksakallı, Infantry Colonel Ertuğrul Erbakan, Infantry Colonel Oğuz Tozak, and Infantry Colonel Mustafa Köksal, who played an active role in the establishment and operation of torture centers, as a form of reward in the Supreme Military Council meeting held right after July 15, did not go unnoticed.
To date, requests for investigations and complaints relatedto allegations of torture submitted to the courts have been disregarded. No HTS records were requested from the relevant authorities regarding these torture teams based on the defendants' statements, and individuals on duty that day were not asked if they had any knowledge or witnessed these events. However, it was revealed in an official document, which was personally prepared by the General Staff, that this situation had changed and an important confession was made regarding the torture that had been carried out.
Support for SecurityForces Through Torture
In the official response sent by the General Staff to the Ankara 24th High Criminal Court, which is in charge of the Turkish Military Academy trial, one of the so-called coup cases, with the signature of Dr. Judge Brigadier General Dinçer Ural, Head of Legal Services of the General Staff, with the document number 26702250-9100-914-18/90063398, torture is implicitly admitted.
In response to the Ankara 24th High Criminal Court's request for information and documents regarding allegations of torture, the official lettersent to the court by the General Staff included the following statements.
“In the chaotic environment immediately following the heinous coup attempt of July 15, 2016, it is known that similar statements were taken to assist the security forces in identifying members of the terrorist organization, but it remains undetermined who collected these statements, and no related information or documents have been found.”
This document, which serves as a confession, appears to be an official letter supporting statements related to torture that have been frequently raisedin the courts, suggesting it will hold significant importance in the future as well.
Salim Sancak
