A few days ago, the Surb Karapet Armenian cemetery in the Baglarbash district of Uskudar (Skutar) district of Istanbul was attacked, as a result of which six graves and one spring were damaged. This is reported by Ermenihaber.am.
In connection with the case of vandalism, K. The Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul condemned this attack and alerted the police, after which the General Prosecutor’s Office of Istanbul announced the initiation of an investigation into this case. As a result of the instructions given to the law enforcement bodies, M.K. was recognized as a suspect. He was detained less than 48 hours later, on July 9, 2026.
The criminal court of Turkey accepted the petition of the prosecutor’s office and detained the suspect. However, his testimony was not published, and it is not yet known what motivated the attack.
After the attack on the Saint Karapet Armenian cemetery, MP Mahmut Dindar of Turkey’s opposition pro-Kurdish “People’s Equality and Democracy” party (DEM) submitted a proposal to the Mejlis of Turkey to start a parliamentary investigation. The purpose of the proposal is to study the attacks on cemeteries and places of worship of Armenian and other Christian communities.
Dindar also sent a request to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Turkey, demanding clarifications regarding hate crimes, investigations and protective measures.
The rationale for that order states that such attacks are “serious hate crimes that target the right to respect for the dead, freedom of religion and conscience, protection of cultural heritage, and the sense of security of Christian citizens living in Turkey.”
The document also emphasizes that in cases of attacks on cemeteries, churches and historical buildings belonging to Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians and other Christian communities, the perpetrators are often not identified or an effective investigation is not carried out, which reinforces the feeling of impunity.
The justification also mentions the previous hate attacks on the Surb Khach Dprevank Armenian School, Galfayan Armenian Elementary School and Kuzgunjuk’s Saint Grigor Lusavorich Church, noting that the culprits were not found in those cases either or the investigation was not effective enough.
Mahmut Dindar was interested in the survey submitted to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
– Over the last 10 years, how many attacks, vandalism or hate crimes have been recorded against Christian cemeteries, churches, monasteries and other historical and cultural structures?
– In how many of those cases have the culprits been identified, in how many cases have public accusations been initiated, in how many cases have judgments been made, and how many cases still remain undetected?
– Was the case of the Saint Karapet Armenian cemetery assessed as a hate crime?
– Is there a special program for the protection of minority cemeteries, churches, synagogues and other places of worship?
– Are there special trainings for police officers on the topics of hate crimes, freedom of religion and protection of cultural heritage,
– Does the ministry envisage new legal, administrative or security measures to prevent attacks on cemeteries and historical places of worship of Christian communities and to eliminate the sense of impunity?
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