The reports, released annually by the İHD to document the deaths of children due to neglect, abuse, torture, suicide and rape in addition to deaths caused by land mines and unsolved bombings, show that the recent death of a girl killed by a mortar shell fired from an unknown location overlooking the village of Şenlik in Diyarbakır province on Sept. 28 was not a unique incident in Turkey. Figures show that 34 children have fallen victim to explosions similar to the Şenlik incident from 2005 to 2008. The İHD reports reveal that 11 children were killed in mine explosions or unsolved bombings and 25 were injured in such explosions in 2008 alone.In 2007, eight children died in similar explosions, while 34 children were injured. The number of children killed in an unsolved bombing or mine explosion was five in 2006, while 32 were injured. In 2005, 10 children were killed in such explosions.
In the most recent incident, 12-year-old Ceylan Önkol, whose family is involved in stockbreeding, was killed when she was hit by a mortar shell while tending to her family's animals. The mortar shell was allegedly fired from a military outpost in the area. The General Staff, however, has denied those claims. The authorities' reported reluctance to perform their duties in a timely fashion drew the ire of a number of civil society organizations, which convened in Diyarbakır on Saturday to protest. The organizations, including the İHD, called on the authorities to carry out their responsibilities and investigate the circumstances surrounding the death.
İHD reports also reveal that a total of 442 children have died in the past four years because of violence against children, rape, honor killing and suicide. While 263 of these children's deaths were attributed to abuse, neglect and rape and 113 committed suicide, the other 66 were victims of honor killings or their deaths were recorded as “suspicious.”
