A man stormed a subway train in Istanbul and threatened two women with a knife, with the video of the attack going viral on the internet and provoking reactions in Turkey over the issue of violence against women.
In the video, the man, named Emra Yilmaz, appears to be initially fighting with a woman, whom he threatens with a bread knife. Then a second woman appears in order to repel the man, who is heard threatening to “cut off her face”.
Fortunately, the two women remain inside the train, after the doors are closed, with the insane man staying on the dock.
The incident took place on Wednesday morning at the Istanbul metro station and the video made the rounds on social media.
The perpetrator was arrested
Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Thursday, removing hundreds of protesters by truck.
According to Turkish media, the man is known to the authorities and he is charged with at least 20 different criminal offenses.
He claimed that he did not intend to threaten the women, but went out of his way as one of them was not wearing her mask properly. When she replied that he could not support her in the nose, because she was injured, then he claimed that he may have deviated a little.
Vulnerable women in Turkey
The Turkish women feel more vulnerable to violence since Ankara withdrew from the international agreement to protect them.
The government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan withdrew from the Istanbul Convention on July 1st, the first international convention to set legally binding rules for dealing with gender-based violence. Women’s rights activists say the decision encourages perpetrators.
In early November, the violent death of Basak Cengiz in Istanbul, a 28-year-old architect who was killed by a samurai sword, caused outrage and terror. The suspect, Chan Goktug Boz, explained to police that he had killed her because she was bored. “I went out to kill someone and chose a woman,” he said.
