Sub-sub-series 38 - Nasır İlhan

17 files

Materials pertaining to the case filed by Nasır İlhan on 24 June 1993 against the Republic of Turkey with the European Commission of Human Rights (application number 22277/93, referred to internally within the Kurdish Litigation Project as Case 8 and assigned to Françoise Hampson as lead) regarding the 26 December 1992 beating of his brother Abdüllatif İlhan by gendarmes and the subsequent denial of medical treatment for life-threatening injuries. Supplementary materials pertaining to this case are located at A44/43/6/46.
Abdüllatif İlhan resided in Aytepe village, southeastern Turkey, under the jurisdiction of Mardin's gendarmerie. The provincial gendarmerie commander, Şeref Çakmak, was aware of the İlhan family's alleged connections with the PKK. On 26 December 1992, Mardin gendarmes commenced an operation in Aytepe, pursuing villager Mehmet Koca, another suspected PKK collaborator. Upon noticing soldiers approaching, Abdüllatif İlhan and İbrahim Karahan fled to conceal themselves in nearby gardens. Although there were no commands to stop, gendarmes led by Ahmet Kurt found them. Karahan was immediately beaten, and Abdüllatif İlhan experienced severe physical violence, reportedly being kicked and struck with a rifle butt, causing him head injuries. He then lost consciousness. Witness accounts include dousing him in a river to revive him, indicating brutal treatment by the gendarmes.
The Commission evaluating the incident dismissed the soldiers' conflicting narratives about the apprehension of Abdüllatif İlhan and İbrahim Karahan, finding their testimony untrustworthy. In contrast, the accounts of İlhan and Karahan were deemed credible. After their apprehension, both men were detained outside the village until operation completion, with another man, Veysi Aksoy, also taken in. Reports claimed a fire was lit to warm İlhan and that dry clothes were provided, but the Commission rejected these claims as credible. Injuries on İlhan's head were apparent, alongside noticeable physical distress. An incident report drafted by the gendarmes suggested that İlhan had fallen, which was contested by the Commission based on the men's testimonies and the unreliability of the report's authors.
Following the operation, Abdüllatif Ilhan was unable to walk, requiring assistance to reach the Konaklı station and ultimately Mardin. Although they were supposedly given medical attention upon arrival at Mardin central gendarmerie station, the examination was superficial. A doctor inaccurately concluded that İlhan was feigning injury. Notable inconsistencies existed regarding who examined him and what treatment, if any, he received. On 27 December 1992, further statements were taken from both men, but İlhan's condition deteriorated during their detention. Finally, 36 hours after their arrest, they were admitted to Mardin State Hospital for treatment, where records indicated severe injuries. Abdüllatif İlhan was hospitalized with a concussion and left hemiplegia after being apprehended. He received scans showing cerebral oedema but did not require surgery, and he was discharged on 11 January 1993. Following his discharge, he returned for check-ups, where doctors reported a 60% loss of function on the left side by June 1993. Despite showing some brain atrophy in later scans, the Commission found no evidence that delays in treatment worsened his long-term condition.
The domestic proceedings revealed that neither İlhan nor his brother complained to the Mardin public prosecutor, but the prosecutor was informed of İlhan's injury during apprehension. A report described him resisting arrest and falling, leading to a determination that the injury resulted from an accident, resulting in no prosecution. Subsequently, İlhan was charged with resisting authorities, admitting to running away out of fear. In court, he accepted the charge but claimed a misunderstanding of the warning from security forces. He was fined, but the fine was suspended. There were concerns about language access in court, as İlhan's brother was not provided an interpreter.
On 27 June 2000, the European Court of Human Rights unanimously ruled that there had been violation of Articles 3 and 13 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and held by 12 votes to 5 that there had been no violation of Article 2. The Turkish Government was ordered to pay Abdüllatif İlhan €£80,600 sterling in pecuniary damages and £25,000 sterling in non-pecuniary damages, and to pay Nasır İlhan £17,000 sterling in legal costs and expenses (less 11,300 French francs granted in legal aid). The full judgment is available for viewing at https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/?i=001-58734.

The files in this sub-sub-series are equivalent to Tabs 1 through 16 in the legal team’s filing system, plus documents originally placed in sleeves at the front of the casefile binder.