Three high school students detained for 'burning Atatürk’s picture' in Turkey

Three high school students have been detained for "burning a picture of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk," founder of the Republic of Turkey, the Kayseri Governor’s Office announced.

Duvar English

A Turkish court on Oct. 26 detained three high school students for "burning a picture of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk," founder of the Republic of Turkey, in the Central Anatolian province of Kayseri’s İncesu district.

The move came after a video showing three students burning the picture spread over social media, according to reporting from Demirören News Agency.

In a statement, the Kayseri Governor’s Office announced their detention and said “It has been determined that a video has been circulated on social media platforms regarding the burning of the picture of Veteran Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of our Republic. The people involved in the incident in question were identified and taken into custody, and the judicial and administrative process was initiated.”

Earlier this month, another high school student in Turkey was sentenced one year and eight months in prison on charges of “publicly insulting the memory of Atatürk” after he was found “making obscene gestures with a photograph of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk” in a video that caused public outrage.