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TURKISH COLONEL'S RETRIAL ON DINK MURDER RESUMES
World Bulletin, Turkey
Dec 26 2013
The retrial against Colonel Oz, accused of neglect of duty in failing
to foil the murder plot against Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant
Dink, resumes.
The retrial against Colonel Ali Oz, accused of neglect of duty
in failing to prevent the Hrant Dink murder, resumed on Thursday
in Trabzon, but the court immediately adjourned the hearing for
technical reasons.
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was murdered in January 2007
by Ogun Samast, who claimed that Dink insulted Turkishness. Dink,
who was the editor in chief of Agos Newspaper in Turkey, was a strong
critic of Turkey's denial of the Armenian Genocide. He was considered
as one of Turkey's most prominent Armenian voices.
Dink's killer, Samast, was jailed for 22 years in 2011. However,
police investigations following his capture revealed a possible link
to an ultra-nationalist organization.
The lawsuit against Gendarmerie Commander of Turkey's Trabzon province,
Colonel Ali Oz, started after the revelation of intelligence indicating
that preparations for the murder had started almost a year before
the murder. Oz is accused for not informing authorities regarding the
received intelligence about the murder, and for forging documents to
make it seem like the intelligence had been obtained after the murder.
Seven other soldiers under Oz's command are also facing prison
sentences.
Oz was charged a second time by a different court, but the second
case was rejected since there cannot be two different cases for the
same crime.
As a result of the first case, Colonel Oz and 5 other soldiers under
his command were sentenced to jail for 4 to 6 months. This decision
was sent to the High Court for examination, and the appeal remains
unfinished. Thursday's hearing was postponed until the High Court's
examination concludes.
World Bulletin, Turkey
Dec 26 2013
The retrial against Colonel Oz, accused of neglect of duty in failing
to foil the murder plot against Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant
Dink, resumes.
The retrial against Colonel Ali Oz, accused of neglect of duty
in failing to prevent the Hrant Dink murder, resumed on Thursday
in Trabzon, but the court immediately adjourned the hearing for
technical reasons.
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was murdered in January 2007
by Ogun Samast, who claimed that Dink insulted Turkishness. Dink,
who was the editor in chief of Agos Newspaper in Turkey, was a strong
critic of Turkey's denial of the Armenian Genocide. He was considered
as one of Turkey's most prominent Armenian voices.
Dink's killer, Samast, was jailed for 22 years in 2011. However,
police investigations following his capture revealed a possible link
to an ultra-nationalist organization.
The lawsuit against Gendarmerie Commander of Turkey's Trabzon province,
Colonel Ali Oz, started after the revelation of intelligence indicating
that preparations for the murder had started almost a year before
the murder. Oz is accused for not informing authorities regarding the
received intelligence about the murder, and for forging documents to
make it seem like the intelligence had been obtained after the murder.
Seven other soldiers under Oz's command are also facing prison
sentences.
Oz was charged a second time by a different court, but the second
case was rejected since there cannot be two different cases for the
same crime.
As a result of the first case, Colonel Oz and 5 other soldiers under
his command were sentenced to jail for 4 to 6 months. This decision
was sent to the High Court for examination, and the appeal remains
unfinished. Thursday's hearing was postponed until the High Court's
examination concludes.