A sweeping and highly controversial police operation initiated on May 6, 2025, has once again cast a chilling shadow over civil society in Turkey. Centered in Gaziantep and spanning 47 provinces, the crackdown resulted in the detention of 225 individuals, with 77—many of them female students—placed under arrest. This marks yet another chapter in Turkey’s prolonged campaign against those alleged to be affiliated with the Hizmet Movement, commonly referred to by authorities as the “FETÖ” organization.
The operation, publicly framed by Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya as a counter-terrorism effort, was launched with striking symbolic and propagandistic overtones. A social media video posted by Yerlikaya depicted scenes of headscarved women engaged in what appeared to be routine home visits, labeled as acts of subversion. These scenes were used to justify mass raids and arrests on the basis of vague allegations: attending educational meetings, participating in overseas trips, and sharing residences with others whose family members had previously been purged under the government’s post-2016 decree laws (KHKs).
Among those re-arrested was Taner Nakıboğlu, the former owner of NAKSAN Holding, a prominent businessman who had previously spent years in prison after being accused of Hizmet affiliation in the wake of the 2016 coup attempt. His re-detention, just months after his release, underscores a relentless judicial cycle that continues to recycle old allegations to legitimize new rounds of persecution.
The numbers from the operation tell a disturbing story:
- 225 individuals detained
- 202 referred to the Sulh Ceza Hakimliği (Criminal Peace Judgeship) for arrest
- 77 arrested, 125 released under judicial control
- Victims include high-achieving students, women, and family members of prior detainees
The most unsettling aspect is the demographic profile of the detainees. The heavy targeting of young female students, many of whom are accused merely for attending academic or cultural trips abroad—such as to Bosnia—or for sharing apartments with peers, signals a dramatic broadening of the state’s definition of guilt by association. In one particularly tragic case, a young woman whose father died of cancer while imprisoned under terrorism charges is now herself in custody.
The use of “terrorism” as a catch-all charge for civic, religious, and educational activities continues to erode public trust in the rule of law in Turkey. The arrests reflect a justice system increasingly weaponized to deter dissent, criminalize association, and suppress educational and religious freedoms—especially among the youth.
The latest Gaziantep operation is not an isolated event. It forms part of a systemic campaign in post-coup Turkey, where nearly 600,000 people have been investigated for links to the Hizmet Movement since 2016. The inclusion of family members, students, and even children in the scope of criminal liability demonstrates a dramatic departure from conventional legal norms and raises urgent human rights concerns.
What began in 2016 as a purge of alleged coup plotters has since morphed into a generational vendetta, sweeping up students, educators, businesspeople, and ordinary citizens. The latest arrests in Gaziantep suggest that the Turkish government continues to expand its definition of “terrorism” to encompass virtually any independent civil or religious activity. In doing so, it risks irreparable harm to Turkey’s social fabric, its legal credibility, and its standing in the international community.
