Renowned geologist Ahmet Ercan detained over earthquake comments

Photo: Ahmet Ercan/Twitter

Click to read the article in Turkish (1) (2)

Övgün Ahmet Ercan, a professor of geophysics, was detained late yesterday (February 28) after posting on his social media that "unprotected women were raped because soldiers did not arrive in the first two days." The İstanbul Technical University professor was charged with "provoking the public into hatred and hostility."

He was yaken into custody in Malatya, a region heavily hit by the February 6 earthquakes that killed over 50,000 people in Türkiye and Syria. After procedures at the police station and courthouse, the geologist was released under judicial control with a ban on leaving the country.

It has not been the first time that Professor Ercan has been critical of the government's response to the two earthquakes' aftermath. Previously, he stated that the emergency management failed and that the 5th army came in only 72 hours after the earthquakes, an indication of "how bad the one-man rule is."

Fellow geologist Professor Naci Görür responded to the arrest in the daily Sözcü, remarking that it saddens him. "Sadly, a scientist trying to inform the nation about the earthquake is subject to such treatment. It does not suit our country."

On February 6, two earthquakes with a magnitude of 7.7 and 7.6 struck the southern city of Maraş. The first quake in the Pazarcık district at 4.17 a.m. was followed by the second one in Elbistan about nine hours later.

The quakes affected 11 cities in Türkiye's south and southeast, as well as Syria's northern parts.

Türkiye's official death toll from the quakes stands at over 45,000 and is expected to increase further, as over 160,000 buildings were destroyed or severely damaged, according to government figures.

Nearly two million people have been displaced due to the earthquakes. (AEK/WM/VK)