A high criminal court in Ankara has acquitted prominent Kurdish politician Ahmet Türk, ruling that a 2011 speech in Siirt did not constitute terrorist propaganda and fell within the bounds of free expression. The case had been used by the Interior Ministry to justify removing Türk as the elected co-mayor of Mardin in November 2024.
The verdict came at the Ankara 14th High Criminal Court, which had tried Türk over remarks he made in March 2011; the file was opened in 2022. Prosecutors sought a conviction, but the court said his words were protected speech in a democratic society.
Türk’s defense team joined the final hearing by video link from the Mardin Courthouse. They argued the proceedings were unlawful because the Siirt Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office had already issued a non-prosecution decision on the same file in 2014 — an argument the bench ultimately found persuasive.
The 83-year-old Türk was last removed from office on Nov. 4, 2024, the third time he has been ousted after winning municipal elections; a government-appointed trustee has run the city since. Human Rights Watch and other observers have criticized the trustee system as disenfranchising voters in Kurdish-majority areas.
The Interior Ministry has not announced whether the acquittal will trigger Türk’s reinstatement. In past cases, acquittals or dropped charges have not automatically led to mayors returning to office, as reinstatement is an administrative decision. Nationwide, Ankara has repeatedly replaced elected pro-Kurdish mayors with appointed trustees since 2016.
Türk’s case concluded amid a fragile thaw around the Kurdish question. On Feb. 27, 2025, imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan issued a message calling on the PKK to lay down arms and dissolve, a landmark appeal read out in Istanbul. PKK militants held a symbolic ceremony in northern Iraq, burning weapons as part of an initial disarmament step, moves covered by major international outlets.
