Syriac Member of Turkish Parliament Çelik demands disclosure of fate of Diril family

ANKARA — In a request submitted to Turkish Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu, independent Syriac Member of Turkish Parliament Tuma Çelik asked if he had information about the fate of the missing Hurmüz Diril. MP Çelik also asked if there was any investigation or search for the missing family and how many times a search was conducted, if any.

The Diril family and local media have called on the Turkish Ministry of Justice to conduct a transparent and public investigation into the kidnapping and suspected murder of Hurmüz (70) and Shmuni (65).

Having disappeared under mysterious circumstances on 11 January 2020, the mutilated body of Shmuni was found by one of her sons on 20 March in a stream near their village of Mahre. Her body had been covered by snowfall and wasn’t visible during previous searches. The state of her body indicated she had been dead for some time.

In a statement to the media, Çelik spoke about the details of the disappearance of the Chaldean couple and criticized the government’s handling of the case.

“A thorough search and investigation were not conducted in the Diril case, and there were no reports from the government in this regard,” said Çelik.

“Therefore, we ask the government to proceed with this case seriously, because 500 days passed and no news has been received yet about Hurmüz Diril, who is the father of the Chaldean Church priest, Ramzi Diril,” Çelik concluded.

A Turkish court recently acquitted independent Syriac Member of Turkish Parliament Tuma Çelik of sexual assault charges. Throughout the investigation and trial MP Çelik has maintained the charges against him were fabricated in retaliation for his advocacy of the rights of the oppressed Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) people of Turkey.

Şırnak’ın Beytüşşebap ilçesine bağlı Kovankaya köyünde yaşayan 65 yaşındaki Hurmüz Diril ve 71 yaşındaki Şimuni Diril’den 11 Ocak 2020'den bu yana haber alınamıyor. Şimuni Diril'in 20 Mart 2020'de cansız bedeni bulundu. Hurmüz Diril'den halen haber yok. #HurmüzDirilsiz500Gün pic.twitter.com/MK3wG7BPCG

— Tuma Çelik (@tuma_celik) May 21, 2021