Systematic torture of Kurdish and Alevi student at Koç University dormitory

At Koç University, F.B., a TÜBİTAK award winner, was attacked by two students he shared a room with because he is Kurdish and Alevi. He was beaten with a belt, threatened with a hot iron pressed to his face, and wounded with a sharp object.

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Systematic torture of Kurdish and Alevi student at Koç University dormitory

A young man named F.B., a TÜBİTAK award winner, was admitted to Koç University on a full scholarship. On October 19, 21-year-old F.B. moved into a dormitory room shared by three students.

According to a report by Dinçer Gökçe from HalkTV, law student Hasan Ege K. (21) and his friend Arda D. (22) were also staying in the room with F.B. According to the investigation conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, Hasan Ege K. and Arda D. began pressuring F.B. to leave the room.

THEY TRIED TO PRESS A HOT IRON TO HIS FACE

After a while, the duo began to subject F.B. to violence. Due to the pressure he faced, F.B. slept in the school laboratory on November 13-14. When he went to his room on the night of November 15 to take a shower, Hasan Ege K. first struck him with a belt and tried to press a hot iron to his face. F.B. was then attacked by Arda D. as he was leaving the bathroom.

HE ESCAPED BY TRIGGERING THE FIRE ALARM

Arda D. turned toward F.B. with a scalpel, a tool he used in his classes that had a sharp blade at the tip. Arda D., who attempted to wound F.B. in the throat while F.B. was wearing a bathrobe, cut his face and abdomen as the victim tried to defend himself. F.B. screamed after being wounded in the face and abdomen. At that moment, students from neighboring rooms arrived at the door. Wounded in the face and abdomen, F.B. pressed the dormitory's fire alarm to call security. After waiting for private security to arrive, F.B. was taken to the hospital by an ambulance.

INVESTIGATION LAUNCHED

An investigation was launched following a criminal complaint regarding the horror that took place in the dormitory room. In his statement to the prosecutor, Arda D. claimed that "F.B. was molesting him," stating, "He kept coming at me. In the heat of the moment, I wounded F. by scratching his waist and face with the material I use in my classes, which is called an art knife and has a scalpel at the tip."

Hasan Ege K., who was understood from the investigation file to have used discriminatory language toward F.B., claimed in his statement that the incident happened outside of his involvement. In his statement, Hasan Ege K. said, "Arda swung the scalpel at F. I saw blood flowing from F.'s waist at that moment."

"HE WANTED TO KICK ME OUT OF THE ROOM BECAUSE I AM ALEVI"

F.B., who was wounded in the face and waist, said in his statement, "Hasan Ege K. wanted to kick me out of the room because I am Alevi and because he was discriminating against me. I was going to file a complaint against him. However, I did not file a complaint because he is a student and I did not want it to reflect on his criminal record. He still continues to discriminate against me."

Explaining that this person tried to press a hot iron against his face, F.B. also noted that Arda D. continued to punch him even after cutting his face.

"IF YOU DON'T LEAVE HERE, WE WILL KILL YOU"

Meanwhile, transcripts of five separate audio recordings have been included in the prosecutor's investigation file. In them, Hasan Ege K., who was trying to force him out of the room, says to F.B., "If the East of Turkey, from a certain point onwards, were set on fire..." Regarding F.B.'s ethnic identity, K. uses phrases such as, "You are an inferior race. You need to be exterminated. You must accept that you are slaves. You have to obey. We don't want you in this room. If you don't leave here, we will kill you."

Hasan Ege K., reached by HalkTV, claimed that the recordings in question were "edited."

ONE OF THE TORTURERS SPEAKS OUT

Following the incident's resonance on social media, Hasan Ege K. made a post about the matter on his X account. Referring to the events as "absurd slanderous news," Hasan Ege K. stated, "We understand who is doing this, with what motive, and for what purpose. Necessary legal applications will be made to ensure the culprits are punished," adding:

"The individual abbreviated as 'F.B.' in the news, who portrays himself as a victim, is under judicial control with a signature obligation for the crime of SEXUAL ASSAULT and is attempting to influence the course of the investigation by securing media support through false news."

"CONTRACT TERMINATED"

Following the incident, İthaki Publishing also issued a statement: "The contract of the author named Hasan Ege Karanfil has been terminated. We announce this to the public."