Europe’s Top Court Orders Türkiye to Free Osman Kavala Immediately

(London, August 25, 2026) – The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that Türkiye must release Osman Kavala, a prominent human rights defender, immediately. The court also ordered that his conviction be quashed. In a landmark judgment today, the Grand Chamber found that Kavala’s detention since November 2017 is unlawful. The court stated that his rights to a fair trial, freedom of expression, and freedom of association were violated. It also ruled that his aggravated life sentence amounts to inhuman and degrading treatment. The court concluded that Turkish authorities acted in bad faith. It said Kavala was convicted for the ulterior purpose of punishing and silencing him, and to stop his human rights work. Kavala was sentenced on April 25, 2022, to life in prison without parole. He was convicted of “attempting to overthrow the government” in what is known as the “Gezi Park trial.” His codefendants received 18-year terms for “aiding the attempt to overthrow the government.” The charges relate to peaceful protests in Istanbul’s Gezi Park in 2013. The court examined the entire Gezi proceedings. It assessed the indictment, charges, evidence, trial, appeals, and conviction against fair trial guarantees. The court found that the entire basis of Kavala’s conviction was “a flagrant denial of justice.” It also recognized structural problems that undermine the independence and impartiality of Türkiye’s judiciary and ordered measures to fix them. This is the third time the ECHR has ruled on Kavala’s case. In December 2019, the court ordered his immediate release. In July 2022, it found Türkiye in breach of its obligation to follow that ruling. Human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, the International Commission of Jurists, and the Turkey Litigation Support Project, submitted a joint intervention to the court. Amnesty International declared Kavala and his codefendants prisoners of conscience in June 2022. “Today, the European Court of Human Rights has comprehensively established that Osman Kavala has been languishing in prison for almost nine years on the basis of a politically motivated trial,” said Eve Geddie, director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office. “Türkiye has defied two previous binding rulings. This obstruction of justice must end.” The groups said Türkiye must act now to free Kavala unconditionally, in line with its international legal obligations and the Turkish Constitution. “Europe’s highest human rights court has confirmed beyond doubt that Kavala’s arrest, detention, prosecution, and conviction was politically motivated and completely flawed from start to finish,” said Ayşe Bingöl Demir, director at the Turkey Litigation Support Project. The Council of Europe, which oversees the ECHR, has yet to take meaningful action to ensure Türkiye’s compliance, the groups said. The Committee of Ministers is responsible for supervising execution of the court’s judgments. “Türkiye agreed to uphold the rights of the European Convention and implement the binding judgments of its court,” said Temur Shakirov, director of the Europe and Central Asia program at the International Commission of Jurists. “It must now honor those obligations, and the Council of Europe needs to act to ensure it does.” The groups called on the Council of Europe, its Parliamentary Assembly, and secretary general to use all available tools to secure Kavala’s release. They also urged member states to keep the case at the top of their agenda concerning Türkiye. “Osman Kavala has been unlawfully imprisoned for nearly nine years,” said Aisling Reidy, senior legal adviser at Human Rights Watch. “The European Court has now demanded his immediate release three times. It is vital that the Council of Europe acts to ensure that Osman Kavala—finally—is freed.”