Osman Kavala legal team requests retrial following ECHR ruling

Osman Kavala’s legal team has filed a request for a retrial following a final ruling by the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) regarding rights violations. The application, submitted to the Istanbul 13th High Criminal Court, seeks to halt the execution of his finalized conviction and requests his immediate release.

The request is based on Article 311 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which allows for the renewal of a trial in favor of the convict when a final decision on a rights violation is issued by the ECHR. In response to the application, the Istanbul 13th High Criminal Court has contacted the Human Rights Department of the Ministry of Justice to request a Turkish translation of the ECHR decision.

Once the Ministry provides the translation, the court will evaluate the merits of the application. If the court complies with the ECHR ruling, a new trial process regarding the Gezi Park case will commence. Kavala has been in detention since 2017, facing various charges including those related to the Gezi Park protests and allegations of espionage.