‘Why Does an ISIS Member Want to Stand Trial in Turkey?’: Impunity in ISIS Trials Brought to Parliamentary Agenda

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Peoples' Democratic Party Antep MP Prof. Dr. Mahmut Toğrul has submitted a parliamentary inquiry about the impunity in the trials regarding the İslamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Turkey.

Citing the releases and the lack of effective investigations in ISIS trials that were mentioned in a previous bianet article entitled "Why does an ISIS member want to stand trial in Turkey?", Prof. Dr. Toğrul has reminded that suspect Neil Christopher Prakash did not want to be extradited when he was captured in Kilis in southeastern Turkey, and wanted to be tried in Turkey.

Headlines from the above mentioned article cited in the parliamentary inquiry address the issues that ISIS suspects have in common and the reasons why these suspects specifically want to stand trial in Turkey.

Common characteristic of ISIS trials: Suspects being released

* Suspects Mohammed Khaled Hawaslı, Ahmad Darviş, Ali Alibrahem, Ehab Haidar, Omran Alibrahem, Zafer Alshal, Zekeriya Derviş, Erkan Çapkın, Burhan Gök, Ahmet Güneş, Ökkeş Durmaz and Mustafa Delibaşlar are being tried in Turkey in separate cases for being an ISIS-member or an executive.

* Some of them have stood trial on charges of being an ISIS-member or an executive, some others on charges of carrying out bomb attacks and faced life imprisonment. Yet these suspects were released on different dates.

* The ISIS suspect facing six life sentences in the trial regarding the bomb attack on İstiklal Street (downtown Beyoğlu, İstanbul) on March 19, 2016, was released in the last trial as well.

* Burhan Gök, one of the suspects of the trial regarding the bomb attack on HDP rally in Diyarbakır on June 5, 2015 killing five people, has been released as well.

* Neil Christopher Prakash, a suspect top on the list of wanted criminals in Australia, who was an ISIS member and stated to have escaped from ISIS, had said that he did not want to be extradited when he was captured in Kilis province in southeastern Turkey.

* In an interview of AFP with the Syria Center for Fight Against Extremist Ideology, the 26 year-old Abdülkadir Derviş from Iraq had stated that he wanted to return to Turkey since he was afraid of being arrested if he returned to his country.

Why do the suspects want to be tried in Turkey?

Prof. Dr. Toğrul submitted the following questions to be responded by the Minister of Justice Abdülhamit Gül:

* Since the bomb attack on Diyarbakır İstasyon Square in 2015 (bomb attack on HDP rally), how many ISIS-members have been detained in Turkey, how many of these have been arrested? How many of those who were arrested, were released later by court?

* According to the reports of the intelligence agency, how many suspects who were detained in Turkey, stood trial and were released, have joined ISIS again after being released?

* Why does ISIS-member Prakash want to be tried in Turkey?

* What was the rationale behind the fact that Turkey has become a country where ISIS-members who commit crimes against humanity, want to stand trial?

* What kind of a relationship built with ISIS leads to the desire of these people to be tried in Turkey although they are not Turkish citizens?

* Could the judiciary choosing rather to try the suspects without keeping them in pre-trial detention when it comes to ISIS trials, be the reason that these people want to be tried in Turkey?

*What is the rationale behind the other characteristic of the ISIS trials, meaning the insistent rejections of the requests by the acquaintances of those who were injured or lost their lives in the bomb attacks and their attorneys to deepen the investigations, to uncover the forces behind these attacks and to investigate the links between these people and public officials?

* What is the reason that many suspects standing trial as ISIS-members or executives, were released at the very beginning of their trial before any sound and effective investigation was carried out at all?

* There is claim that there is report by the National Intelligence Agency (MİT) supporting the releases of the [now-released] ISIS suspects, namely Ahmet Güneş, Ökkeş Durmaz and Mustafa Delibaşlar. MİT has not denied the claims. What is the opinion of your Ministry on the issue? (AS/DG