Trial Begins Over Deadly Hotel Collapse in Turkey's 2023 Earthquakes

Eleven defendants face charges of 'conscious negligence' and breaching construction rules in a case highlighting the country's criticized building regulations.

First major criminal trial linked to last year's earthquakes in Turkey has begun, focusing on the collapse of the Isias Grand Hotel in Adiyaman, which resulted in 72 deaths, including a school volleyball team from Turkish-controlled northern Cyprus.
Eleven defendants, including the hotel owner, are charged with 'conscious negligence' and breaching construction rules. Prosecutors argue the building had significant construction defects, including the illegal addition of extra floors.
Over 50,000 people died in the earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria on February 6, 2023, with widespread criticism directed at the Turkish government for encouraging a construction boom while failing to enforce building regulations.
Relatives of the victims attended the start of the trial, calling for harsh sentences for the defendants and charges against the state authorities who issued the permits for the hotel's construction.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who won re-election months after the earthquakes, blamed the high death toll on corrupt property developers who allegedly used cheap building materials and illegally added extra floors.