Court turns down generic defense plea and jails Fedai Varan, 43, who brutally stabbed his ex-wife to death in a cafe in Turkey in front of her daughter, 10, in horrific attack caught on video, for life
Fedai Varan, was found guilty of his ex-wife’s murder by the court in the Turkish city of Kirikkale and sentenced to life behind bars Monday
Emine Badegül Bulut was brutally murdered by ex-husband Fedai Varan, 43, in the city of Kirikkale, Turkey in August
Bulut, 38, had divorced Varan four years ago and her murder sparked outrage after a video of the horrific attack in a public setting, went viral, immediately
Bulut’s final words ‘I don’t want to die’ became rallying call for women protesting the rising tide of femicide in the country
Varan who refused to testify on his own behalf said through his attorneys that his estranged wife ‘provoked’ him to commit murder by ‘insulting’ him
That plea which in the past yielded acquittals or light sentences for offenders in Turkey was reject by the court
Jailed for life: Fedai Varan, 43, was found guilty of his ex-wife’s murder by the court in the Turkish city of Kirikkale and sentenced to life – He told police his estranged wife ‘provoked’ him to commit murder by insulting him
A Turkish court today gave a life sentence to a man who was convicted of murdering his ex-wife in front of her 10-year old daughter in a high-profile case.
The murder of Emine Badegül Bulut in August by her ex-husband at a cafe in the central Turkish city of Kirikkale, in front of their 10-year-old daughter went viral of the moments after she was stabbed.
After the image of the child pleading with her mother covered in blood, following the horror stabbing in a cafe, aired, the killing of 38-year-old Bulut by her ex-husband in such a public setting, in front of her child sparked outrage in Turkey.
‘I don’t want to die,’ Bulut, covered in blood, is heard screaming to her 10-year-old child. Her tearful daughter says: ‘Mum, please don’t die.’
Today, her ex-husband Fedai Varan, 43, was found guilty of Bulut’s murder by the court in the central city of Kirikkale.
Victim: Emine Badegül Bulut seen [in photo], with her daughter, was stabbed to death by her ex-husband in cafe in Kirikkale, Turkey, two months ago
Bulut, who had divorced Varan four years earlier, was stabbed in this cafe [photo] in Kirikkale in August, 2019
Bulut, who had divorced Varan four years earlier, was stabbed in a restaurant in Kirikkale. She later died in hospital.
Bulut’s final words have since become a rallying cry against rising femicides in Turkey.
When he was first taken into custody, Varan told police he had killed Bulut but suggested he had been provoked because she ‘insulted’ him.
During the first hearing on October 9, the killer refused to testify, using his right to remain silent.
Chilling footage shows Emine Badegül Bulut [L-R], screaming ‘I don’t want to die’ after being stabbed by her ex husband. Her daughter was also caught pleading with the victim to stay alive
Bulut, seen [left], with her daughter and another relative, can be heard screaming ‘I don’t want to die’ in the video clip posted on social media
Varan again opted not to testify on Monday, claiming that he was not being ‘justly tried’ according to state news agency Anadolu.
The number of women killed in Turkey is rising. and there had been fears among women’s rights activists that Varan’s insult claim would mean he would be given a reduction in his sentence but the court rejected the hackneyed defense ploy.
The murder of Bulut [right] sparked a wave of outcry and calls on social media and from Turkish politicians alike to tackle the alarming rise in violence against women
According to the women’s rights group We Will Stop Femicide, 354 women were killed in the first nine months of 2019.
The group said 121 women were killed in 2011, while 440 women were killed in 2018.
Although Turkey has ratified the Council of Europe’s 2011 Istanbul Convention on preventing domestic violence, rights defenders criticize the fact that killers or abusers can received reduced sentences for ‘good behavior’ or if they claim ‘provocation’.
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