Turkish court acquits men for dancing on top of Armenian church gate in Istanbul

A Turkish court has acquitted three men who danced in July 2021 on top of the gate of an Armenian church in Istanbul's Kadıköy district.

Monday March 07 2022 03:57 pm

Duvar English

An Istanbul court has acquitted three men who danced on top of the gate of Surp Takavor Armenian Church in Istanbul's Kadıköy district.

“One did not climb the church. Those who climbed did not act with criminal intent,” the court’s ruling said.

An Istanbul prosecutor's office had demanded the defendants receive a sentence of up to one year in prison, citing "disturbing public peace.”

“Two of the defendants, Ömer Faruk Arman and Yunus Emre Uzun, said that they were drunk, they turned on music in the car, that there was entertainment in Kadıköy, that for a moment the people around began to dance, then they went up to the church wall and danced, without having an intention to insult religious values. The other defendant, Ozancan Yılmaz, never climbed the gate,” the ruling further noted.

Three defendants were temporarily detained on July 12, 2021 after a video of them dancing on top of the gates of the Armenian church prompted protest.

Two men are seen dancing mockingly on the gate of Surp Takavor Armenian Church in the evening, as a third sits next to them and passersby join them in the hate crime.