A land dispute in southern Turkey leaves five dead, seven injured

CEYHAN, Adana – Doğan News Agency

The incident took place in the village of Azizli near Ceyhan, in the Adana province. AA photo

Five people were killed and seven others injured after a fight broke out between two families over land ownership in the village of Azizli near Ceyhan in southern Turkey. The incident came about when Mahmut Mazı, a member of the ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) Adana Province General Council complained to his neighbor, the former chief of the Azizli village İsmail Tan that a 3,000-square-meter plot of land between both properties belonged to him.  

The families were already engaged in a legal lawsuit, however, the dispute escalated into a shootout when members of the Mazı family came to the land today to take some measurements and members of the Tan family felt they were trespassing. Both Mazı and Tan were killed during the fight.

Three people, one of them injured, have been arrested over the fight. Following the incident, special teams belonging to the Gendarmerie Forces took extra security measures in the area. Provincial commander of the Gendarmerie Albay Murat is said to have visited both families and asked for restraint in furthering the violence.