ISTANBUL (Turkish Minute) — Hundreds of people gathered in İstanbul on Monday, January 19, to commemorate the 19th anniversary of the killing of Hrant Dink, the Armenian-Turkish journalist who was shot dead outside the offices of Agos newspaper in 2007.
Dink, the editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian bilingual newspaper Agos, was murdered by Ogün Samast, then a 17-year-old jobless high school dropout.
The murder sparked national and international outrage, with critics accusing Turkish authorities of failing to prevent the killing despite clear threats against Dink from ultranationalist circles.
The annual vigil was held outside the Sebat Apartment building in the Şişli district, where Agos once operated and which now houses a site dedicated to the memory of Dink. A banner bearing Dink’s photograph and the words “Memory, truth, life, longing” was hung on the facade.
Dink’s family, friends and colleagues from Agos attended along with journalists, rights advocates and representatives of political parties and civil society groups. Participants chanted slogans calling for justice and opposing impunity in the case, which has long been cited by critics as an example of unresolved political violence and failures of accountability in Turkey.
Bülent Aydın, speaking on behalf of the “Friends of Hrant” group, said Dink’s words had endured and expanded over the years, pointing to a younger generation present at the commemoration.
