Former hunger-striking lawyer Aytaç Ünsal detained in northwestern Turkey

Duvar English

Turkish security forces on Dec. 9 detained Aytaç Ünsal, who carried out a hunger strike for more than 200 days in demand of a fair trial, in the northwestern province of Edirne.

The detention came on the grounds that Ünsal was attempting to cross to Europe illegally, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said that along with Ünsal, three others had been also detained. Security forces found a boat and navigator in the vehicle that was carrying Ünsal, according to the ministry.

Ünsal's mother Nermin Ünsal told Halk TV that the former hunger-striking lawyer had been suffering from a lot of health problems due to nerve damages. "His state of health was not good. He had nerve damages, had a lot of problems and was still under treatment," she said. 

“His sentence had been postponed for a year. Police called a little while ago and told me that he was detained due to suspicion of feeling [abroad],” she further noted. 

Aytaç Ünsal, accused of terrorism charges, was released on the 213th day of his hunger strike on Sept. 3.

Ünsal had been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison as part of a 2019 court ruling against 18 members of the Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD) and the People's Law Bureau (HHB).

Turkey's Court of Cassation on Sept. 3 ruled for Ünsal's release due to the progressive deterioration of his health. The judges have also suspended his sentence but have not canceled it.

In November, police raided Ünsal's home in Istanbul's Armutlu neighborhood. The HBB at the time released a statement on Twitter and shared the photos of the raided house. "The judicial reform of the fascism is more of a state terror," the HBB said in its statement.