failed coup attempt. Omer Halid Dervise, 21, is still in coma, his
brother told Anadolu Agency on July 22.
“My brother has been
heavily wounded after he was shot by the coup plotters on the night of
July 15. He is still in a coma,” Hassan Halid Dervise said, adding they
went out to the street upon President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s call for
people to take to the streets in protest.
“There was news saying a
coup was occurring. Later, President Erdoğan appeared and he made a
call to take to the streets. This is not just a matter for Turks, but
also a matter of freedom, justice and humanity. So we had to abide by
the call. We owe this country. We had to stand with the people,” Halid
Dervise said.
building in Istanbul’s Fatih district to support protesters trying to
stop military vehicles and soldiers attempting to take control.
“When
we reached the municipal building, a group of soldiers had already
surrounded it. Those soldiers suddenly began to open fire on the crowd.
My brother Omer moved to the front to shoot a video and a bullet tore
off his lip. It was not a serious wound, just bleeding. We, with our
friends, carried more wounded people to a safe place where cars were
stationed,” Halid Dervise also said.
wounded people to safe places, the brothers turned back to the front
line when special operations police arrived at the building.
“We
walked with the crowd. In the last fire, we were very close to the area
where soldiers were stationed. I was trying to stick together with my
brother but the soldiers suddenly began to fire on us. I lost my brother
and friends when the crowd dispersed,” Halid Dervise said.
Dervise said that he phoned his brother but he did not respond. Halid
Dervise’s friends later said the plotters had shot his brother and he
had been taken to a hospital.
“We all ran to the
hospital. He was in the intensive care unit. He was shot from behind
while fleeing… He is still in critical condition,” he added.
