Istanbul Anatolian Courthouse Acquits Defendant in Hifa Ikra Case

Istanbul 2nd High Criminal Court today acquitted A.S., a manager of the Kuran'a Hizmet Foundation who had been accused of sexually abusing Hifa Ikra — the child found dead alongside her mother Fatma Nur Celik last March. The hearing was held at the Anatolian Courthouse.

Before the hearing, women's groups gathered outside the courthouse carrying banners reading "We demand justice for Fatma Nur and Hifa Ikra." The hearing began following a press statement; the Istanbul Bar Association, the Bursa Bar Association, the Labour Party, and the Children and Women First Association all requested to join the case as intervening parties.

The court rejected a request by Mujde Tozbey, chairperson of the Children and Women First Association, to lift the confidentiality order. When it was alleged that the verdict had been announced after the prosecutor requested acquittal — and without granting defense lawyers the floor — women's organizations and political party lawyers protested the judicial panel by applauding as it left the courtroom.

The news was reported by Cumhuriyet Gazetesi. The case had entered the public agenda following the March events in which Fatma Nur Celik and her daughter Hifa Ikra lost their lives under suspicious circumstances, and children's rights organizations had been closely monitoring the proceedings.