The trial of Kenan Ayaz in its final stages

The court’s 15 interim rulings on defense motions marked the 12th of  April hearing in the trial of Kurdish Kenan Ayaz at the Federal District Court in Hamburg. The trial is heading towards its final stages and, under German law, the parties are allowed to submit requests for the introduction of additional testimonial material and to object to the legality and admissibility of existing material.

It was against this background that Friday’s hearing was conducted, where the court was called upon to rule on a number of issues submitted in the form of objections, which deal with issues of due process, issues of inadequate interpretation and translation, issues for which the police authorities were responsible during the investigation of the case, and issues of bias on the part of the court. It will be recalled that in previous judgments, the court had prohibited the defence from presenting certain reports in the German and Turkish press concerning an attempt to interfere in the trial of Kenan Ayaz.

The reason for this was the statements of gratitude made by Tayyip Erdogan to the German Chancellor for the extradition of the Kurdish fighter from Cyprus to Germany, and the general attempt by the Turkish State to interfere in the political trial being conducted against Kenan Ayaz.

During the next hearing, which is set for 17 April, another 40 interim judgments are expected to be issued on the basis of relevant objections that have been accumulated over the past weeks. With the issuance of these judgments, and assuming that no new facts or new issues arise, the court will proceed with the closing arguments of the parties to the trial.

Observatory on the trial of Kenan Ayaz

14 April 2024