Man dies in Maritsa River while fleeing persecution in Turkey


Date posted: March 15, 2017

The body of Mustafa Zümre, a computer engineer at the 15th Missile Base Command in İstanbul who was dismissed from his post due to alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement and was being investigated for the same reason, has been found in the Maritsa River 78 days after he went missing, Turkish media reports said on Wednesday.

Zümre, for whom an arrest warrant was issued due to alleged Gülen links, reportedly went to the Umurca village of Edirne’s Meriç district along with his wife and children on Dec. 12 to cross the Maritsa River to reach Greece in order to escape the witch-hunt against the Gülen followers in Turkey.

Zümre reportedly jumped into the Maritsa River while he was fleeing a gendarmerie team. Rescue teams from Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Agency (AFAD) searched for Zümrüt for two weeks, but nothing had been heard from since then until his body was found in the Maritsa River on March 8 by Turkish military patrols six kilometers from the riverbank where he went missing.

His body was sent to the İstanbul Council of Forensic Medicine where DNA tests confirmed his identity.

Thousands of people have been forced to leave Turkey through illegal ways because their passports have been cancelled due to the ongoing crackdown on the followers of the Gülen movement, which is accused by the Turkish government of masterminding a failed coup attempt on July 15.

Turkey experienced a military coup attempt on July 15 that killed over 240 people and wounded more than a thousand others. Immediately after the putsch, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government along with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan pinned the blame on the Gülen movement despite the lack of any evidence to that effect.

Although the Gülen movement strongly denies having any role in the putsch, the government accuses it of having masterminded the foiled coup. Fethullah Gülen, who inspired the movement, called for an international investigation into the coup attempt, but President Erdoğan — calling the coup attempt “a gift from God” — and the government initiated a widespread purge aimed at cleansing sympathizers of the movement from within state institutions, dehumanizing its popular figures and putting them in custody.

In the currently ongoing post-coup purge, over 135,000 people, including thousands within the military, have been purged due to their real or alleged connection to the Gülen movement, according to a statement by the labor minister on Jan. 10. As of March 1, 93,248 people were being held without charge, with an additional 46,274 in pre-trial detention.

A total of 7,316 academics were dismissed, and 4,070 judges and prosecutors were purged over alleged coup involvement or terrorist links.

Source: Turkish Minute , March 15, 2017


Related News

Erdoğan’s plan to contain corruption scandal

Despite the obstacles he has orchestrated for those pursuing the investigations, Erdoğan has never been able to gain enough traction to shift the debate away from corruption since Dec. 17. He must now be running on fumes.

Turkish woman returned to prison with newborn 4 days after birth

Hatice Şahnaz, in pretrial detention on charges of alleged links to the Gülen movement, was put back behind bars in southern Turkey a few days after delivering a baby.

“Volunteers of education can end the chaos in the Muslim world”

Republican People’s Party (CHP) former party council member, Muhammed Cakmak referred to the global initiatives by volunteers of education as “a universal movement” and shared his belief that it will end the chaos in the Muslim world. CHP advisor noted this understanding based on de-marginalizing should prevail in Turkey in order to overcome social problems. […]

Reports of en masse wiretappings denied by prosecutors

Pro-government newspaper reports claiming thousands of people were wiretapped by prosecutors as part of an investigation into an unfamiliar terrorist group have been denied by both prosecutors who handled the investigation.

Turkish police detain 35 lawyers for ‘defending’ Gülen sympathizers

This latest move against the Gulen sympathizers is a violation of a basic right of the suspects, who are still legally innocent until proven guilty, to defend themselves at the courts. It is clear that Erdogan regime leaves the suspects no room to defend themselves at the courts.

U.S. would look weak, and be weak, if they sent Muslim cleric back to Turkey

For two years, Christians have prayed for the release of the Rev. Andrew Brunson, an American held in prison in Turkey. His recent release by a Turkish Court was a source of joy for America. But if it leads to the murder of the most anti-terrorist Muslim cleric who is living in America, as part of some sick “trade, …

Latest News

Fethullah Gulen – man of education, peace and dialogue – passes away

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis

In Case You Missed It

Fethullah Gülen’s Condemnation of the New Year’s Eve Terrorist Attack in Istanbul Nightclub

Retired public servant under custody for distributing donations to post-coup victims

Fethullah Gulen’s Message for International Day of Peace

Aydan Meydan from Bosna Sema School won the “Inspiring Educator Award”!

Volunteer doctors from Turkey save lives in Somalia

Cold Turkey: Erdogan’s withdrawal from democracy

BBC report: Women with younger-than 6-months-old babies in jail in Turkey

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News