ECHR Says Turkey Failed to Comply with Ruling to Release Philanthropist

A protestor holds a placard reading "Don’t obey" in front of the Istanbul Caglayan Court House in support for jailed Turkish businessman and philanthropist Osman Kavala, in Istanbul, Turkey, 26 April 2022. (EPA)
A protestor holds a placard reading "Don’t obey" in front of the Istanbul Caglayan Court House in support for jailed Turkish businessman and philanthropist Osman Kavala, in Istanbul, Turkey, 26 April 2022. (EPA)
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ECHR Says Turkey Failed to Comply with Ruling to Release Philanthropist

A protestor holds a placard reading "Don’t obey" in front of the Istanbul Caglayan Court House in support for jailed Turkish businessman and philanthropist Osman Kavala, in Istanbul, Turkey, 26 April 2022. (EPA)
A protestor holds a placard reading "Don’t obey" in front of the Istanbul Caglayan Court House in support for jailed Turkish businessman and philanthropist Osman Kavala, in Istanbul, Turkey, 26 April 2022. (EPA)

Europe's top rights court said on Monday Turkey had not complied with a ruling that called for the release of philanthropist Osman Kavala, moving further in a process that could lead to Ankara's suspension from the Council of Europe (CoE).

The Committee of Ministers of the CoE, which oversees the implementation of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) rulings, referred the case back to the court in February.

Kavala, who has been in jail for nearly five years, has since been convicted of attempting to overthrow the government and was sentenced to life in prison without parole in April.

Seven others were sentenced to 18 years for aiding him in what critics said was a political trial aimed at criminalizing nationwide demonstrations in 2013, known as the Gezi protests, the biggest popular challenge to then-premier Tayyip Erdogan.

The Grand Chamber of the ECHR ruled on Monday that Turkey had violated the European Convention on Human Rights by not releasing Kavala in line with the court's previous ruling.

The court said the new indictment brought against Kavala after the ECHR ruling in Dec. 2020 did not contain any substantial facts and that "the investigating authorities had once again referred to numerous acts which were carried out entirely lawfully".

It added that Kavala was still in detention despite three decisions for his release and one acquittal, ordering Turkey to pay him 7,500 euros ($7,600).

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said the ruling was disappointing and it expected the Committee of Ministers to act without bias and with common sense during the following proceedings.

The ECHR ruled more than two years ago that Kavala should be released immediately and said his detention served to silence him, but Turkish courts have kept him in jail.

The ECHR's ruling on Monday is the latest step in the so-called "infringement proceedings" which could lead to Turkey's suspension from the CoE, of which it is a founding member.

As the next step in the process, the Committee of Ministers will decide on what measures to take as a result of Turkey's failure to comply with the ECHR ruling.

Legal experts say Turkey's removal from the CoE would lift the protection afforded on citizens by the European Convention on Human Rights as well as the ECHR.

Erdogan, who is now president, has said Turkey will not respect the CoE if it does not respect rulings by Turkish courts. He also said the ECHR ruling on Kavala does not apply after he was convicted.

The Gezi trial was seen as symbolic of the crackdown on dissent under Erdogan's rule, as well as the use of the judiciary to punish his opponents. Erdogan and his AK Party say Turkish courts are independent.



Surgery on Colombian Senator Went Well after Shooting, Wife Says

Police officers guard the area surrounding the Fundacion Santa Fe clinic, where Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe is hospitalized after being shot in Bogota on June 8, 2025. (Photo by Alejandro MARTINEZ / AFP)
Police officers guard the area surrounding the Fundacion Santa Fe clinic, where Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe is hospitalized after being shot in Bogota on June 8, 2025. (Photo by Alejandro MARTINEZ / AFP)
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Surgery on Colombian Senator Went Well after Shooting, Wife Says

Police officers guard the area surrounding the Fundacion Santa Fe clinic, where Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe is hospitalized after being shot in Bogota on June 8, 2025. (Photo by Alejandro MARTINEZ / AFP)
Police officers guard the area surrounding the Fundacion Santa Fe clinic, where Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe is hospitalized after being shot in Bogota on June 8, 2025. (Photo by Alejandro MARTINEZ / AFP)

Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe, a potential presidential contender, survived an initial operation for his injuries after being shot in Bogota on Saturday, according to his wife and the hospital treating him, although he remains in intensive care.

Uribe, 39, is a member of the opposition right-wing Democratic Center party and was shot in the head during a campaign event in a public park in the Fontibon neighborhood.

A boy under 15 years of age was arrested after the shooting, the attorney general's office said in a statement on Saturday, adding he was carrying a 9-millimeter Glock-type pistol.

The government said it is investigating if there were other potential perpetrators. Leftist President Gustavo Petro urged an investigation into who had ordered the attack in remarks late on Saturday.

Campaigning is just beginning for the country's 2026 presidential election and Uribe, who is from a prominent political family, does not have a well-known platform so far.

It was unclear why he was targeted in the attack. Though he has talked about the need to improve security and about having personally suffered in the country's conflict, many other potential candidates, including others from his party, have also said steps must be taken to tackle crime.

Uribe's grandfather was president from 1978 to 1982, while his mother, journalist Diana Turbay, was kidnapped in 1990 by an armed group under the command of the late cartel leader Pablo Escobar. She was killed during a rescue operation in 1991.

"Miguel came out of surgery, he made it. Every hour is a critical hour. He fought his first battle, and it went well," his wife Maria Claudia Tarazona told local media on Sunday. "This will take time."

The couple are parents to a young son, Reuters reported.

In a statement, the Santa Fe Foundation hospital where Uribe was treated said he had procedures on his head and his left thigh, and remained in intensive care as doctors seek to stabilize his condition.

Uribe's party said in a statement that armed subjects shot him from behind. Videos on social media showed a man, identified as Uribe, being tended to after the shooting. He appeared to be bleeding from his head.

Bogota's mayor, Carlos Galan, whose own presidential candidate father was assassinated in 1989, addressed journalists outside the hospital overnight, saying he had asked for increased protection for all candidates in Bogota and for Uribe's family.

UNDER INVESTIGATION

The Colombian government is offering some $730,000 as a reward for information in the case.

"For now there is nothing more than hypothesis," Petro said, adding that failures in security protocols would also be looked into. Uribe had the bodyguard protection provided for senators and other officials.

Petro sympathized with Uribe's family in a message on X, saying: "I don't know how to ease your pain. It is the pain of a mother lost, and of a homeland."

People gathered outside the hospital in northern Bogota, staging candlelight vigils and praying, while others carried Colombian flags. A march of support was planned for Sunday.

Several nations on Sunday including Brazil, Italy, Spain, Uruguay and Paraguay condemned the attack, as did the Venezuelan government and opposition.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement that the US "condemns in the strongest possible terms the attempted assassination" of Uribe, blaming Petro's "inflammatory rhetoric" for the violence.

Petro was an outspoken critic of US President Donald Trump's deportation policies earlier this year, but has been less vocal since Trump threatened to impose tariffs and sanctions on the Andean country.

Colombia has for decades been embroiled in a conflict between leftist rebels, criminal groups descended from right-wing paramilitaries, and the government.