A journalist in Turkey has died after she was fatally shot in the street by her jilted ex-husband who she divorced two years ago.
Tulay Dagasan was left seriously injured when she was gunned down in the Abdi Ipekci neighbourhood of the Darica district of Kocaeli by Sefik Karaali.
She was hit in the neck by three bullets in the shooting that took place on 4th January.
Local media reports said that her ex-husband had repeatedly made death threats against her since the divorce.
She was rushed by ambulance to the Darica Farabi Training and Research Hospital after being given first aid by medics at the scene who had been called by shocked witnesses, but she died on the operating table.
Karaali, a minibus driver, reportedly fled the scene in his work vehicle, with investigators actively searching for him before he eventually turned himself in, according to local media.
The suspect had repeatedly threatened his ex-wife a number of times, saying that he would kill her.
Femicide is a growing problem in Turkey, particularly after the country officially quit the Istanbul Convention in July of 2021.
According to the 2023 Annual Data Report announced by the We Will Stop Femicide Platform, 315 women were killed by men throughout last year, while 248 women were found suspiciously dead.
According to data from the Monument Counter – which is “a digital memorial for women killed by violence” that gets daily updates – five femicides have taken place in Turkey so far this year.
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The police investigation is ongoing as the dead woman’s colleagues went on social media to share their sadness at the loss.
One, Merve Disli, said: “Our colleague Tulay Dagasan, who worked at Batı Yakası TV operating in Darıca, lost her life as a result of an armed attack by her ex-husband. Femicide will continue to haunt us in 2024. Damn this system and those who feel empowered by it to carry out such evil deeds.”
And WomanInJournalism wrote: “#TulayDagasan brutally murdered by ex-husband in Kocaeli. Our hearts go out to her family. Horrific tragedy exposes deep-rooted crisis of violence against women in country. #CFWIJ demands urgent action to combat gender-based violence.”
While Disk Basin-Is said: “Male violence took another friend from us. A man named Sefik Karaali killed Batı Yakası TV employee Tulay Dagasan. We are very sorry, we are very angry. We will continue the fight until not a single woman’s hair is harmed!”
