Sivas massacre case dropped over statute of limitations

ANKARA

An Ankara court has decided to dismiss the case related to the tragic arson attack on the Madımak Hotel in Sivas in 1993, citing the expiration of the statute of limitations.

During the proceedings, the complainants and their legal representatives argued that the case should be classified as a "crime against humanity," stressing that the possibility of it being dropped due to the statute of limitations should be eliminated. Additionally, they requested the renewal of the red notice request for the fugitive defendants.

The court determined that the 30-year extraordinary statute of limitations had expired on July 2, leading to the dismissal of the case against the fugitive defendants — Murat Sonkur, Murat Karataş and Eren Ceylan.

The decision was met with protests from those present in the courtroom attended by several political figures.

Earlier, the court decided to separate the file pertaining to fugitive defendants from the main case file on the grounds that they could not be located.

The tragic incident targeted a gathering of artists and scholars participating in a conference organized by the Pir Sultan Abdal Culture Foundation (PSAKD), an Alevi organization.

The event unfolded during a time when renowned short story writer Aziz Nesin, who was among the conference attendees, had become a public target for translating Salman Rushdie's "The Satanic Verses" into Turkish.

The participants of the conference were accused of being infidels by a large crowd outside, incited by local political leaders.

The devastating fire claimed the lives of 33 people attending the conference, along with two hotel staff members. Notably, two protesters who were part of the crowd outside the hotel, which had contributed to the events leading to the fire, also died in the blaze while observing the hotel's occupants in distress.

The building was expropriated in 2010 and transformed into a science museum. The families of many of the victims had long demanded that the building be turned into a "museum of shame."

Among the notable individuals killed in the Madımak Hotel arson attack were poets Metin Altıok, Behçet Aysan and Uğur Kaynar, writer Asım Bezirci, Dutch anthropologist Carina Cuanna and renowned Alevi musicians Muhlis Akarsu and Nesimi Çimen.

Notably, Aziz Nesin, the acclaimed writer and humorist, was rescued by firefighters but endured a harrowing experience as he was beaten by his rescuers while escaping the engulfed building.