04/01/2021 Turkey (International Christian Concern) –  Turkish courts recently ruled that Osman Kavala’s detainment is not in violation of his rights to personal liberty. However, the dissenting opinion of seven members indicated that “the charges and the detention are incompatible with the Constitution, ECHR, and the norms of the ECtHR”, according to Kavala’s lawyers.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) previously ruled for Kavala’s release in December 2019, though Turkey has not been compliant. The most recent ruling narrowly allowed for his continued detainment, with eight for and seven against. Chief Justice Zühtü Arslan’s dissenting opinion read, “The most important issue with regard to the application is that, let alone the strong indication of the existence of a charge of political or military espionage on which the applicant was arrested, not even a simple suspicion could be presented.”

To learn more about Kavala’s imprisonment and its contribution towards Turkey’s harassment and erasure of Christianity, read ICC’s joint report here.

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