A 61-year-old woman, named as Saliha Ozkol, was killed early on Monday morning in the occupied village of Ayios Georgios, near Trikomo, in what Turkish Cypriot media are describing as another femicide in the north.
Circumstances of the attack
According to reports circulating in the north, Mustafa Ak, aged 71, went to Ozkol's home at around 6.40am and, under circumstances still under investigation, attacked her with a knife, inflicting a wound to the neck in the courtyard of the property. He was later found seriously injured at his own home in Famagusta, with authorities determining that he had attempted to take his own life. He remains in serious condition at Famagusta general hospital. Some Turkish Cypriot outlets report that the two had previously been married.
Prior history of violence and legal protections
Turkish Cypriot news website Bugun Kibris reported that "judicial" decisions had previously been issued in the case, noting that Ozkol had suffered violence at the hands of her ex-husband in the past, which had led to protection orders and restrictive measures being imposed against him. According to the same report, Ak had served a three-month prison sentence in 2025 over violence against Ozkol and a breach of a protection order.
The outlet also said it held a medical certificate documenting a severe beating suffered by Ozkol at her ex-husband's hands on 3 January 2024. Citing a decision of the "district court" of Famagusta dated 21 July 2025, the report said Ak faced charges including trespassing on private property, assault, illegal possession of a knife, battery, and failure to comply with a protection order.
Bugun Kibris posed the question directly: "The violence was known, there were protection orders and a prison sentence had been imposed. Why could Saliha Ozkol not be protected?"
Political reaction
The women's branch of the Republican Turkish Party (CTP) called on Monday for the resignation of the "government" following the killing. "We cannot wait for another woman to be murdered," the organisation said, announcing a protest for Tuesday outside the "prime ministry" to demonstrate against femicide and violence against women.
The group noted that, last month, another woman had survived an attempted murder and remained in hospital fighting for her life. "How many more women will be murdered? The job of a government is not to make statements after a murder," it said, adding that such killings are the result of years of ignored male violence and gender inequality.
Source: Bugun Kibris, Yeniduzen
