Hunger Striker Dies, Pushing Death Toll to 48
A 38-year-old Turkish man died of starvation, becoming the 48th fatality in more than a year of hunger strike protests against Turkish prison conditions.
Yeter Guzel died in an Istanbul hospital, the fifth striker to die this year, the Anatolian news agency said. Hundreds of prisoners and many of their supporters launched the hunger strikes to protest plans for new prisons with small cells. The protesters say the cells isolate prisoners and leave them open to abuse.
Officials say the new prisons meet European standards, and they have refused to negotiate with strikers.
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