On Monday, the Turkish news website Gerçek Gündem reported that Salafi extremist Halis Bayancuk, widely known as “Abu Hanzala”, has been released from prison, triggering a significant public response.
Bayancuk’s release confirms a pattern observed during Turkey’s election process in May in which multiple Islamist extremists were freed from prison. This was believed to be the result of negotiations between the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)-led People’s Alliance and various extremist Islamist groups in Turkey with the purpose of securing collaboration during the elections.
Bayancuk, once the leader of the Salafi group known as the Tevhid Community, previously had been charged with “establishing and leading an armed terrorist organisation”, receiving a 12 and a half year prison sentence. He faced multiple instances of arrest and subsequent release on similar charges. The recent decision to consolidate three separate cases relating to Bayancuk’s alleged activities led to his trial and ultimate release.
Halis Bayancuk was expected to be released during the initial hearing, allegedly under AKP pressure from HÜDA-PAR, Gerçek Gündem’s sources claimed. “HÜDA-PAR had extensive discussions with the Court of Cassation beforehand. In exchange for their support of the AKP, they presented this case and similar cases. I believe Abu Hanzala made a deal. They deleted and removed all speeches containing controversial and harsh statements from the internet as a concession,” Gerçek Gündem cited another source as saying.
Bayancuk’s father Hacı Bayancuk was linked to the military wing of the Kurdish Hizbullah, implicated in several murders in south-eastern Turkey and had alleged close relations to the Free Cause Party (HÜDA-PAR), holding a position of responsibility within Kurdish Hizbullah’s military wing in 1992.
HÜDA-PAR’s leader Zekeriya Yapıcoğlu previously served as Hacı Bayancuk’s defence attorney during his sentencing to life imprisonment. Notably, several individuals affiliated with HÜDA-PAR and associated with Kurdish Hizbullah were also released following the party’s inclusion in the ruling coalition.
