Council of Europe notifies Turkey of planned action over Osman Kavala

The Council of Europe said Friday that it will launch disciplinary action against Turkey over its refusal to release from prison the prominent activist and philanthropist Osman Kavala, triggering a procedure used only once before in the organisation's history.

The pan-European rights body's committee of ministers agreed the move over the repeated refusal by Turkey to comply with a 2019 ruling to release Kavala by the European Court of Human Rights, it said in a statement.

The Council asked Ankara to submit its view on the case by 19 January 2022, the statement said.

Last week a Turkish court ruled to keep Kavala in prison, extending his four-year detention without conviction in a trial which has added to strains in Ankara's troubled relations with its Western allies.    (Reuters/AFP))