Memorials honor Uğur Mumcu on 33rd anniversary of death

ANKARA

Commemorative ceremonies will be held across Türkiye on Jan. 24 to mark the 33rd anniversary of the assassination of investigative journalist Uğur Mumcu, as the legal battle to identify those behind the 1993 bombing remains unresolved.

Mumcu, a prominent researcher and writer, was killed on Jan. 24, 1993, when a bomb planted under his car exploded outside his home in Ankara.

Hundreds are expected to gather on the street bearing Mumcu’s name in the capital. Mourners, including main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Özgür Özel and Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş, will lay flowers and light candles at the site of the blast. A moment of silence is scheduled to honor Mumcu’s legacy as a pioneer of Turkish investigative journalism.

Similar tributes are planned in the Aegean district of Ayvalık, where a ceremony will be held outside the journalist's house.

The assassination triggered one of the largest investigations in the country’s history, though the masterminds remain unknown. The case is currently tied to a broader class-action lawsuit involving 22 unsolved killings.

Evidence in the case surfaced significantly in 2000 following a police raid on a Hezbollah-affiliated house in Istanbul. Prosecutors have alleged that the murders were carried out by individuals linked to radical Islamist organizations, reportedly with assistance from Iranian intelligence.

Though several defendants were sentenced to prison in 2014, the case against the primary suspect remains open. Oğuz Demir, the man accused of planting the bomb under Mumcu’s car, has been a fugitive since escaping a police operation in 2000. Demir is currently on the Interior Ministry’s most-wanted list.

Mehmet Ağar — a former police chief who also served as interior and justice minister — testified as a witness for the first time during a hearing on Sept. 22.

Appearing via video link from Istanbul, Ağar denied allegations that he had been under pressure to obstruct the probe.

"Who can put pressure on me?" Ağar told the court. "I will not succumb to any illegal pressure. If I had even the slightest information, I would report it."

In an effort to locate the fugitive Demir, the court has issued formal requests for information to the National Intelligence Agency (MİT), the General Directorate of Security and the Foreign Ministry.

The next hearing in the case is scheduled for Feb. 9.