The pain of the incident continues to haunt people's memories, remaining fresh despite the passage of time.
On the night of July 18, 1993, families who had gone to Sündüs Plateau in Bahçesaray district to meet their winter needs and graze their sheep fell victim to an attack by an unidentified armed group. The massacre claimed the lives of 24 people, including 14 children, leaving a lasting impact on the collective memory.
Out of the victims, only Ahmet Sevgili, aged 62, Hicret Güzel, and two young children survived the ordeal. Shockingly, no autopsy reports were prepared for the 24 individuals who were brutally killed. Furthermore, local newspapers that reported on the massacre were seized by the Van Governorate.
The identities of the perpetrators of the massacre, the significance of the G3 bullets found at the crime scene, why the Turkish government and Van Governorate attempted to cover up the incident, and the identity of the helicopter that landed at the crime scene—all these questions have remained unanswered for 30 years.
In 2014, on the 21st anniversary of the massacre, families submitted an application to the Van Chief Public Prosecutor's Office to prevent the case from reaching the statute of limitations. Prosecutors re-examined the case, but the revelations made by Kadri Cihan, a member of the PKK known by the alias Deniz Koçer, in the file related to the attack on the Alan Border Post in Şemdinli district, Hakkari province in 1992, failed to satisfy both the families and the public.
As the 30-year mark since the tragic incident in Sündüs Plateau is observed, the quest for justice continues. The unresolved questions surrounding the massacre and the need for accountability persist, leaving the families and the public still yearning for answers. (ILKHA)