Authorities announced an investigation into the murder of prominent human rights lawyer Tahir Elçi in southeastern Turkey over the weekend is almost complete despite attempts by the PKK to prevent crime scene investigation.
Elçi, also head of Bar Association in the southeastern city of Diyarbakır was killed there last Saturday when he was shot during a press conference in the district of Sur. An inquiry was launched to determine whether he was deliberately targeted or caught in crossfire during a clash between members of terrorist organization PKK and police. His press conference in front of a historical structure damaged in PKK violence was cut short when the police officers chasing down militants who earlier killed two officers in a nearby area, engaged in a clash with militants. Elçi was killed by a bullet in the back of his head.
Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ, who visited Elçi's family yesterday, said all evidence regarding the incident was collected despite two attacks on crime scene investigators by the PKK on Saturday and Monday. He said the investigation was still underway and forensics team accompanied by a prosecutor managed to gather sufficient evidence for the inquiry. Denying allegations of a cover-up in the murder, Bozdağ said the inquiry was "transparent" and prosecutors will not impose a gag order.
Selahattin Demirtaş, the co-chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), the opposition movement linked to the PKK, had claimed Turkish police was behind the murder while government critics claimed the murder was perpetrated by police and would be covered up. Bekir Bozdağ said the terrorist organization "did all it can" to obstruct the investigation by two attacks on forensics team. "It is not sincere to say that the government is covering it up when there are attacks on our teams. The attackers are apparently disturbed that the truth behind the murder would be found out," Bozdağ said.
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu also denounced "speculations" surrounding the murder and accused "those attempting to cover up the murder" were "those attacking the investigators."
