AMED -Hacire Akar, was sitting in front of the HDP building with the claim that “my son was kidnapped in the mountains.” Last night, his son, Mehmet Akar, set himself on fire in the Sûr district against the isolation imposed on PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan.
It has been learned that the young man, who set his body on fire in the historical Goat Bastion in Amed’s Sur district, was 25-year-old Mehmet Akar, who was allegedly “smuggled into the mountain” in 2019 and was later forced into marriage by his family. After the incident, which took place late at night, many police and medical teams were sent to the region. Akar was taken to Dicle University Medical Faculty Hospital by the medical teams. It was learned that Akar, who is undergoing treatment, has a second degree burn on his body and his condition is severe. While Akar’s family is waiting at the hospital gate, the police are blockading the relevant part of the hospital.
AKAR’S LETTER: BIJÎ SEROK APO
A letter stated to belong to Akar also appeared. In his letter, Akar stated that he took the action against the absolute isolation on PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan. Akar’s handwritten letter in Kurdish included the following statements: “Hello, comrades. I want to salute the action of Heval Bubo (*). There is no news from Leader Apo. Neither his family nor his lawyers are allowed to meet. Applications are rejected without any justification. We are now worried about the health of Leader Apo.
In return, I will set my body on fire in Amed goat sign at 21:21. May the light of the fire that ignites my body illuminate Imrali. My hope is that this action will lead to the physical freedom of Leader Apo.
Biji Serok Apo
Biji Serok Apo
Biji Serok Apo”
HDP WAS THE FIRST FAMILY BROUGHT TO IT
Mehmet Akar’s mother, Hacire Akar, went to the Diyarbakır Police Department on 22 August 2019 and filed a missing persons complaint alleging that her son was “abducted to the mountain”. After her application, mother Akar, who went in front of the HDP Amed Provincial Organization building, accused HDP members of the sit-in, claiming that her son did not come out after entering the party building and was kidnapped from there to the mountain. Anadolu Agency (AA) and other pro-government media outlets also reported news claiming that Mehmet Akar was “abducted into the mountain”.
AKAR: I DON’T WANT TO BE MARRIED
However, it was revealed that Mehmet Akar wanted to be forced into marriage. Mehmet Akar, who reached the Mesopotamia Agency (MA) on August 23, 2019, condemned the news about him and the sit-in action started by his family and stated that the reason for leaving home was because he wanted to forcefully marry his aunt’s grandson.
Stating that she stayed at her older sister Ceylan Mutaş’s house in Rêzan (Bağlar) district, she was forcibly detained by her father Aziz Akar and older brother Mustafa Akar and taken to her home in Soğanlı District, Akar said, “Since I did not accept the forced marriage, they came to my sister’s house after I slept and they took me by force. They took me to the village. They insulted me, they confiscated my phone, my wallet, my phone and my money. They didn’t let me out of the house. I didn’t eat,” he said.
‘NO ONE KILLED ME’
Stating that the allegations about his family’s abduction were unfounded at that time, Akar said, “No one kidnapped me, it has nothing to do with the HDP. It’s wrong for my family to even stand there. I also told my family; I deleted my family. I said, ‘I have nothing to do with you. I didn’t go anywhere, I’m here. I will definitely not go to them. Let them not blame anyone, I left the house of my own will. No one sent me anywhere as no one directed me. I didn’t go anywhere, I’m here. It is also wrong for my family to continue a sit-in there. It has nothing to do with HDP. I am not affiliated with anyone. I left the house by myself. My family should not blame anyone. I will not meet my family. I can choose my own life. I do not accept my family’s forced marriage,” he said.
HE SHOWED THE REAL FACE OF Anadolu Agency (AA)
Akar, who also denied the news provided by AA, said, “Nobody should spread false news. I am in Diyarbakir. I didn’t run to the mountain, I’m here. They should not slander anyone.”
HOLDED FOR 8 DAYS
Akar was taken into custody one day after his interview and was held in Diyarbakır Security Directorate for 8 days. Akar was released under house arrest with “electronic handcuffs” after 8 days of detention.
FORCED MARRIED
Akar was later married by his family in Amed on October 19, 2019. Deputy Minister of Interior Muhterem İnce and former Diyarbakır Governor Hasan Basri Güzeloğlu, former Sur District Governor Abdullah Çiftçi and AKP former Provincial Chair Süleyman Serdar Budak also attended the wedding.
Government officials also announced that they gave Mehmet Akar a job at that time, but it was learned that Akar made a living by working as a taxi driver.
*Bubo Taş: He set his body on fire on January 12 at the Küçük Sanayi Sitesi in Merdîn’s Artuklu district. In the video he took before the action, Taş stated that he had set his body on fire against the isolation imposed upon PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan.
