Brig. Gen. Yavuz Ekrem Arslan, a Turkish army commander jailed pending trial after Turkey’s July 15, 2016 coup attempt, died in an Ankara hospital after falling ill in pretrial detention, according to a November 2017 report.
Arslan was commander of the Manisa 1st Infantry Training Brigade.
He was detained after the coup attempt on allegations of involvement in the failed putsch and later jailed pending trial by a court.
After spending 259 days in pretrial detention, Arslan became ill and was transferred to Gülhane Training and Research Hospital in Ankara, where he died.
He was to be buried in Ankara following noon prayers.
Arslan’s death drew attention to the treatment of military personnel jailed in the mass prosecutions launched after the coup attempt.
The case also underscored the length of pretrial detention in post-coup proceedings, in which many officers and soldiers were held for months or years before final verdicts.
Ankara blames the coup attempt on alleged Gülen movement-linked officers, a claim the movement denies.
The Gülen movement is a transnational civic initiative inspired by Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen. Ankara designates it as a terrorist organization, while the movement denies involvement in the coup attempt or any terrorist activity.
Arslan’s death came as Turkey continued large-scale investigations, dismissals and prosecutions within the armed forces, with critics arguing that many defendants were deprived of timely and individualized judicial review.
