Armenian human rights activist released after detention in Turkey

An Armenian activist, known for publicizing a travel ban on a woman whose cancer-stricken nine-year-old son was sent abroad for treatment, was detained for several hours over alleged insults that she posted on social media.

Arlet Natali Avazyan, an Armenian-origin Turkish human rights activist, was detained in Turkey’s southern province of Adana where she was visiting her mother, IPS News reports.

The activist announced her detention on her Twitter account late on Tuesday, February 12, saying police had raided her brother’s apartment in Istanbul in search of her earlier in the morning. She has 135 000 followers on Twitter.

Avazyan said in video footage before her detention that she was waiting at her mother’s home for the police to take her in for questioning, referring to an insult-related accusation about herself without providing any further details.

“Our state has seen every Tweet that I posted as an insult. I hope to come together again [with my beloved ones] in healthy and good days,” the activist said in the video.

Avazyan, who had been expected to spend the night in police custody, also thanked those who expressed their support after the revelation of her detention.

Later she tweeted in the early hours of Wednesday morning that she was released after her statement was taken shortly after midnight.