Turkey's Parliament to boost benefits for martyr families and veterans

The Justice and Development Party (AK Party) has prepared a 12‑article draft law to revise the legal status and entitlements of families of martyrs (şehit) and veterans (gazi) in Turkey. Coordinated by Deputy President Cevdet Yılmaz, the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Family and Social Services, and the AK Party group, the proposal will be submitted to the Grand National Assembly after a meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The bill would introduce the term “martyr” in official population registers, replace “deceased” for such persons, and define martyr and veteran categories more clearly.

Financial measures include guaranteeing that monthly allowances to martyr families and veterans will not fall below the net minimum wage and raising existing care support from two to four times the minimum wage. The draft also extends an honorary monthly payment to those injured in the 15 July coup attempt, adds a new status for security personnel seriously wounded in anti‑terror operations, and eliminates medical‑device cost deductions for prostheses and other aids. It further proposes that the burial site of martyrs be selected with the consent of their parents.