ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkish foreign ministry summoned Germany’s ambassador on Friday for his country’s “attempt to interfere” in the case of philanthropist Osman Kavala, reported Turkish state media. Turkey sentenced the leading philanthropist and intellectual to life in jail on Monday for his alleged involvement in a coup plot. The decision has been slammed by local and international rights groups and western countries. Germany summoned the Turkish envoy in Berlin on Friday over the case and called on other European Union countries to take a similar diplomatic step. Turkish state-owned Anadolu Agency (AA) cited diplomatic sources as saying that German Ambassador to Ankara, Jurgen Schulz, was summoned by the Turkish foreign ministry late Friday. Schulz was told that his country’s condemnation of the controversial case was an attempt to politicise Kavala’s case and interfere with “independent” Turkish courts. Kavala was arrested in November 2017 on charges of overthrowing the constitutional order of Turkey and espionage. He was accused of financing a 2013 protest in Istanbul and was acquitted, but was re-arrested and charged with taking part in the 2016 attempted coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The US has also condemned Turkey over its Monday decision. “The United States is deeply troubled and disappointed by the court’s decision to convict Osman Kavala,” US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement. “His unjust conviction is inconsistent with respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law.” Amnesty International described Kavala’s conviction to life imprisonment “a devastating blow to human rights,” while renewing its call for his release. In 2019, the European Court of Human Rights ordered Turkey to release Kavala, with the Council of Europe warning Ankara to comply with the ruling or it would launch disciplinary proceedings.
