The academic Aylin Sözer was murdered when she was burnt to death in her house in Maltepe district of İstanbul, Turkey.
Aylin Sözer (48), a lecturer at İstanbul Aydın University, was reportedly burned to death with a flammable substance in her own house. It has been reported that the prime suspect in the murder case is Kemal Delbe, who was allegedly her ex-boyfriend.
As reported by Hürriyet newspaper, the feminicide was committed at around 12.30 pm in Maltepe district in İstanbul on 29 December. After her siblings could not reach her, they called the police. According to BBC Turkish, the Maltepe District Governorship, in commenting on the incident and case, stated that the apartment was set on fire to make the murder look like a theft. In the statement issued by the district governorship: “It was determined that it was related to the issue of ‘deliberate killing'”.
According to preliminary determinations, at around 8 am, Kemal Delbe allegedly went to the house of Aylin Sözer. It is alleged that he killed her and set fire to the apartment to make it look like a suspect theft. Kemal Delbe was taken into custody and a judicial investigation was initiated in relation to the murder.
There has been public outrage in social media after the femincide of Aylin Sözer was announced. Women especially have taken to social media to express their sentiments. Aylin Sözer’s students – from the women’s studies club of the university – shared a message on social media.
“Just as we could not protect other murdered women, we could not protect you, either”, the students said, They added: “This is not a letter, this is a declaration where we cry out our rage loudly. So many Aylins are massacred in this country everyday. With which preventive mechanisms will you stop feminicides?”
