Turkish Murder of Syrian Refugees (2016)
In June 2016, allegations surfaced regarding the killing of Syrian refugees by Turkish border guards as they attempted to cross into Turkey from Syria. Reports indicated that between eight and eleven individuals, including children, were shot near Jisr al-Shughur in Idlib Province. The Turkish government has denied these allegations, asserting that they do not reflect the truth. This incident occurred against the backdrop of the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis, which intensified due to the Syrian Civil War that began in 2011, leading to significant displacement. Turkey has become the country hosting the largest number of Syrian refugees, with over 2.7 million at the time, creating a complex humanitarian situation marked by inadequate living conditions for many.
Human rights organizations have reported ongoing violence at the Turkish-Syrian border, highlighting increasing tensions between border guards and refugees seeking safety. Since 2013, there have been numerous accounts of border guards using lethal force, particularly as the European Union pressured Turkey to manage the flow of refugees. The situation remains a critical human rights concern, with conflicting narratives between humanitarian groups and the Turkish government regarding the treatment of refugees attempting to flee conflict and hardship.
Subject Terms
Turkish Murder of Syrian Refugees (2016)
Date: June 19, 2016
Place: Near Jisr al-Shughur, Syria
Summary
In June 2016, Syrian refugees and human rights groups alleged that Turkish border guards killed between eight and eleven Syrian refugees attempting to cross the border from Syria into Turkey. The Turkish government denied the reports.
Key Events
- June 19, 2016—Turkish border guards allegedly open fire on Syrian refugees attempting to cross into Turkey near Jisr al-Shughur in Idlib Province, Syria.
Status
As of late 2016, the Syrian refugee crisis remains a major issue in Turkey, with the United Nations estimating there were more than 2.7 million Syrian refugees in Turkey—more than any other country. The Syrian refugee crisis in Turkey is also one of the nation’s chief human rights concerns, with many of the transplanted Syrians living in inadequate conditions, according to human rights groups.
In-Depth Overview
The global Syrian refugee crisis began with the start of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, after the Syrian army intervened to prevent anti-government and pro-democracy protests mirroring similar student and activist movements in Tunisia, Bahrain, Yemen, and Egypt, a phenomenon sometimes referred to as the Arab Spring. The situation in Syria deteriorated quickly, with numerous militant groups forming to fight the government of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. In the chaos, the terrorist organization Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), which seeks to establish an Islamic caliphate in the Middle East, rose to prominence and captured large swaths of territory in Syria. Between 2011 and 2016, the conflict led to the largest displaced population since World War II.
Because Syria shares its northern border with Turkey, Syrians began illegally crossing into Turkey as soon as the Syrian Civil War began, and Turkey has since become the single largest haven for Syrian refugees. Conflicts between Turkish authorities and Syrian refugees have been ongoing since 2011. Since 2013, there have been reports of Turkish border guards firing at Syrian refugees attempting to cross the border. Turkish officials have denied reports of Turkish military firing on refugees, while reports of violence against refugees continue to emerge from human rights organizations.
In late 2015 and early 2016, with an increasing number of Syrian refugees passing through Turkey toward other European nations, the European Union put pressure on Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan to limit the flow of refugees. As a result, Turkey has attempted to clamp down on refugee crossings from Syria, citing overpopulation in Turkey and the nation’s difficulty in coping with the increasing refugee population. Illegal border crossing then resulted in an increased number of reported incidents of violence against refugees committed by guards at the Turkish border. Human rights groups have reported that dozens of refugees, including children, have been killed by Turkish border guards since late 2015. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a Great Britain–based human rights monitoring agency, has reported numerous instances of Turkish border patrols using violence to turn away refugees. The Turkish government has denied these charges.
On June 19, 2016, reports from SOHR alleged that Turkish guards had opened fire on a group of Syrian refugees attempting to cross the border near Jisr al-Shughur. According to SOHR, eight people were killed, including at least three children, while a number of others were wounded. Two other Syrian anti-government monitoring groups, the Local Coordination Committee and Raqqa Is Being Silently Slaughtered, put the number of dead at eleven. According to witnesses, at least seven of those allegedly killed and five who were wounded were members of the same family, who were reportedly trying to escape from Jarabulus, a Syrian village controlled by ISIS. Though the death of the Syrian refugees was widely reported, the Turkish government denied the reports, with Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic saying they "do not reflect the truth." SOHR reported that as many as sixty Syrian civilians have been shot by Turkish border guards since January, though the Turkish government denies this claim. A Human Rights Watch report from May also alleged that Turkish soldiers and border guards regularly beat and shoot at Syrian refugees attempting to smuggle themselves and their families across the border.
Key Figures
Recep Tayyip Erdogan: Prime minister of Turkey between 2003 and 2014; president since 2014.
Bibliography
Abdulrahim, R. (2016, June 19). Guards kill Syrians at border, groups say; Turkey denies charge. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from http://www.wsj.com/articles/turkish-border-guards-kill-at-least-11-syrian-civilians-trying-to-enter-illegally-1466337945
Ensor, J. (2016, June 19). Turkish border guards kill 11 after "firing indiscriminately" at Syrian refugees. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/06/19/turkish-border-guards-kill-11-after-firing-indiscriminately-at-s/
Kingsley, P. (2016, June 19). Turkish border guards kill eight Syrian refugees—reports. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/19/turkish-border-guards-kill-eight-syrian-refugees-reports
Loveluck, L. (2016, May 10). Turkey still shooting at refuges as young as three, says Human Rights Watch. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/10/turkey-still-shooting-at-refugees-as-young-as-three-says-human-r/
Syrian refugee: "Five of my family were shot" at Turkish border. (2016, June 19). BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-36571926
Tuysuz, G., & McKirdy, E. (2016, June 20). Syrian monitors: Turkish border guards kill eight refugees. CNN. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/20/middleeast/sohr-turkey-syria-border-shooting/
Yeginsu, C., & Shoumali, K. (2016, June 19). 11 Syrian refugees reported killed by Turkish border guards. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/20/world/middleeast/11-syrian-refugees-reported-killed-by-turkish-border-guards.html