Three go on trial in Turkey for girl's murder

Ankara, June 12 (IANS/AKI) The trial of three men opened in Turkey on Friday for the attempted rape and murder of a 20-year-old female student, a case that sparked off a national debate on violence against women.

Minibus driver Suphi Altindoken, his father, and another accomplice face life in jail for the killing of Ozgecan Aslan in Mercin, southern Turkey, on February 13.

Aslan's burned and mutilated body was found in a riverbed in February two days after she was last seen alive boarding a minibus driven by Altindoken to return home from a shopping trip.

Altindoken and the two other defendants confessed to Aslan's brutal killing, which rocked Turkey and led to internet campaigns and mass protests demanding more action to stop violence against women.

On Friday, hundreds of women gathered outside the courthouse in Tarsus, southern Turkey, calling for action to protect women.

In a show of solidarity, some 1,000 lawyers volunteered to represent the victim, but only 100 were able to get into the court due to limited space.

Altindoken allegedly drove Aslan to a wooded area after the other passengers on the minbus had got off and tried to rape her. She fought him off with pepper spray, but was then stabbed and bludgeoned to death with an iron pipe, according to prosecutors.

Some 134 women are believed to have been murdered in Turkey this year and more than 280 women were killed there by men in 2014.

--IANS/AKI

ab/bg