YENİ Party Chairman Özgür Özel spoke to journalists following the commemoration ceremony held on the 11th anniversary of the Ankara Train Station Massacre. Demanding that the October 10, 2015 attack be clarified in all its aspects, Özel argued that the massacre should be classified as a crime against humanity in order to prevent the statute of limitations from applying, and commemorated the 104 people who lost their lives.
Touching on the fund crisis, Özel criticized the arrest of journalists and the house arrest orders, describing the crisis as a “state crisis.” Demanding that the list of 455 thousand people be made public, Özel said, “Let them release the list and put an end to this,” arguing that those responsible should step down from their posts and testify.
Özel reacted to Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s remarks regarding Cemil Tugay’s candidacy: “If you knew this, why didn’t you expel the Karşıyaka mayor? Why didn’t you refer him to the disciplinary board?” Arguing that no mayor’s name was mentioned during the handover, Özel said the statements were intended to open them up to debate over İzmir.
Background
Özel is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we have published 13 stories featuring this name in the last 90 days; the most recent is dated October 3, 2026.