Lider Polat was tortured for five hours after having his vehicle hijacked in Istanbul by attackers posing as police officers.

“Fear died long ago. These games cannot bring Kurdish youth back”, he said.

A member of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Istanbul Youth Assembly, Polat was assaulted during a hijacking in the Soğanlık neighbourhood of Kartal in İstanbul by four people who introduced themselves as security intelligence.

Polat, who was subjected to torture and psychological violence in two different vehicles from Kartal to Başakşehir, is not the first person to be attacked in this way.

In the last six months, five people have had their vehicles hijacked. In all cases, the hijackers attempted to enlist their victims as spies. When they refused, they were beaten and left on the highway.