Oya Budak, five-and-a-half months pregnant, was transported to a hospital in Istanbul with a gunshot wound to the chest but was pronounced dead along with her unborn child. The Daily Mail reports that her fiancé, a 19-year-old man whose name has not been released publicly, was arrested and confessed to the killing.
The alleged murder took place after the suspect learned of Budak’s pregnancy during a hospital visit. “When she said she was in pain, her fiancé took her to the hospital and learned she was pregnant,” her grandfather, Orhan Budak, told reporters.
Local outlets say the young woman became pregnant after being raped, though her family was reportedly unaware of the incident. Once her fiancé’s family discovered the pregnancy, they reportedly pressured him to call off the engagement.
The killing, which occurred overnight in Istanbul, marks the 209th reported femicide in Turkey this year, according to figures from a local women's rights organization.
Activists in the country continue to condemn what they describe as an epidemic of gender-based violence, arguing that the Turkish government has not done enough to address rising femicide and violence against women and LGBTQ individuals.
In 2022, protests erupted in Istanbul over the issue of femicide, despite a government ban on demonstrations for International Women’s Day. Thousands participated in the Feminist Night March that year, pushing through police barricades in defiance. At least 38 women were arrested, and officers deployed pepper spray on demonstrators trying to reach Taksim Square.
