Human Rights Foundation of Turkey Documentation Center[1][2][3][4][5]
6 May 2026 Daily Human Rights Report
(05/021) Torture and Other Ill-Treatment in Prison…
It was learned from news reports published on May 5, 2026, that BİRTEK-SEN General Chairperson Mehmet Türkmen, who is being held at the Antep E-Type Prison, was placed in solitary confinement using physical force following his statement regarding human rights violations in the prison and the situation of sick inmates.
It was learned from news reports on May 5, 2026, that due to overcrowding in the cells at Antep E-Type Prison, some inmates were forced to sleep on the floor.
(05/022) Inmate Denied Access to Healthcare in Prison…
It was learned from news reports on May 5, 2026, that Mehmet Çıtlak, a sick inmate held at the Antep E-Type Prison, had not been given the medication he needed for his treatment for 16 days.
(04/023) The Trial in Ankara Involving the Mayor of Istanbul and Others…
The trial, which was initiated at the Ankara Criminal Court of First Instance No. 26 on the grounds of alleged irregularities at the 38th Ordinary Congress of the Republican People’s Party (CHP)—where Özgür Özel was elected as General Chairman—and involves 12 individuals, including Istanbul Metropolitan Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, continued on May 6, 2026. The indictment seeks the prosecution of the 12 individuals on charges of “violating election laws.” The court adjourned the hearing until July 1, 2026.
(05/024) Trial of Magazine Executives…
The trial of six executives and cartoonists of Leman Magazine, initiated at the Istanbul 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance on the grounds of a cartoon published in the magazine, began on May 5, 2026.
The indictment seeks the conviction of the magazine’s responsible editors-in-chief, Zafer Aknar and Aslan Özdemir, the institution director Ali Yavuz, and graphic designer Cebrail Okçu, as well as the magazine’s general publisher Mehmet Tuncay Akgün, on the charge of “publicly inciting the public to hatred and hostility through the press and media,” , while the cartoon’s artist, Doğan Pehlevan, is charged with “repeatedly inciting the public to hatred and hostility through the press and publications.”
The court decided to lift the judicial supervision order against Doğan Pehlevan, to take the statement of Mehmet Tuncay Akgün, who is abroad, at his current location, and adjourned the hearing to October 13, 2026.
Doğan Pehlevan, Zafer Aknar, Cebrail Okçu, and Ali Yavuz were arrested on July 4, 2025, while Aslan Özdemir was arrested on July 12, 2025. Zafer Aknar, Cebrail Okçu, Ali Yavuz, and Aslan Özdemir were released on September 26, 2025, while Doğan Pehlevan was released on November 14, 2025. An arrest warrant remains in effect for Mehmet Tuncay Akgün.
(05/025) Individuals on Trial in Istanbul…
The final hearing of the case filed at the Istanbul Criminal Court of First Instance No. 46 against Oğuzhan Uğur, the moderator of the BaBaLa TV YouTube channel, along with Kaan Kayacan and Ercan Özdemir—on the grounds of their social media posts regarding the status of certain dams in Hatay and Maraş—was held on May 5, 2026.
The court acquitted the three individuals of the charge of “publicly disseminating misleading information.”
(05/026) Social Media Accounts Subject to Access Restrictions…
It was learned from news reports on May 5, 2026 that access restrictions were imposed on the X social media accounts belonging to Özgür TV, the Federation of Socialist Youth Associations, the New Democracy Newspaper, the Red Flag Newspaper, the Revolutionary Youth Union, and the Independent Revolutionary Class Platform.
(05/027) Deputy Minister’s Discriminatory and Phobic Remarks…
In a speech delivered on May 6, 2026, Deputy Interior Minister Bülent Turan used the following discriminatory and phobic language: “European countries have practically encouraged numerous problems such as drug use, LGBT propaganda, digital addiction, online gambling, cybercrime, and individualism. We watched with sorrow and shame as the youth they held up as an example at the Paris Olympics.”
[1]The reports on the human rights violations of the Documentation Center are claims unless they are certified. The claim of violation either is certified through thoroughly investigations of HRFT Documentation Center, including by judicial verdicts, and becomes a definite data or it is not included to the annual report.
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[5] Daily Human Rights Reports are prepared on the information gathered by the Documentation Center from its own network and the following dailies and internet portals: Vatan, Milliyet, Hürriyet, Habertürk, Evrensel, Birgün, Cumhuriyet, Fırat Haber Ajansı, Jinnews, ETHA, Mezopotamya Ajansı, Yurt, Yeni Yaşam, NTV, Yeni Asya, Bianet, Halkinsesi.tv, Cnnturk, Tr724, İleri Haber, Siyasi Haber, Alınteri, Kızılbayrak, Sendika.org, Yüksekova Haber, T24, Diken, Gazete Karınca, Gazete Duvar. Haber Sol, El Cezire, BBC, Deutsche Welle, Reuters, AFP.