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Report finds girl responsible for deadly explosion, not military
Since the shocking death of Ceylan Önkol in Diyarbakır's Lice district, it has been alleged that a military mortar shell caused the girl's death. Önkol's brother, Rıfat Önkol, previously said she was out in a bushy area gathering leaves for the sheep she was watching when she was suddenly hit by a mortar shell that apparently came from a higher location. The only place located on higher ground than the village is a military outpost overlooking the area. The General Staff has denied any responsibility in the death of the young girl.
In the criminal report released on Monday, however, officials announced that experts had thoroughly examined shrapnel found on the scene and concluded that it could not have been a mortar shell that killed Önkol. They said they found no evidence of any weapons being fired that day. The report said Önkol was most likely playing with a grenade that had been previously launched by a grenade launcher but did not explode, with a billhook in her hand, which caused it to explode.
However, many found the report unconvincing. The Taraf daily, which has been covering Önkol's death in detail since the incident, asked questions yesterday regarding the report. The daily drew attention to the fact that Önkol's hands were not damaged by the explosion although her body was torn into pieces.
Serdar Çelebi, a lawyer who represents the Önkol family, said on the other hand that the family called him and said Önkol's billhook was at home when she died. “If she had a billhook in her hand, as it is said in the report. It would be key evidence,” he said. Çelebi also complained that prosecutors have not handled the issue properly, noting that he had concerns about the fate of the investigation. “I do not know, an investigation may be launched into me as well. I do not know how the actual cause will be revealed,” he said.
Unexploded ordnance a nightmare for southeasterners
Unexploded ordnance (or UXOs/UXBs, sometimes shortened as UO) are explosive weapons (bombs, bullets, shells, grenades, land mines, naval mines, etc.) that did not explode when they were fired and still pose a risk of detonation, potentially many decades after they were used or discarded. Yakup Evirgen, a retired major, told Today's Zaman that many UOs can be found in Turkey's Southeast, originally launched in clashes with outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) terrorists. “However, there are methods of destroying them without harming anybody,” he added.
A recent report by the Human Rights Association (İHD) has shown that 47 civilians in the region have been killed by unexploded ordnance in the last two years, in addition to 112 people injured. The number of those killed by such explosions since 2000 is 237.
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