Turkish woman beaten to death by would-be rapist

Turkey’s president has described violence against women as the “bleeding wound” of the country after a woman was stabbed and beaten to death after trying to fight off a man trying to rape her.

Despite a surge in violence against women in Turkey last year, the particularly brutal, and public, attack on Ozgecan Aslan, 20, has become a rallying point, prompting protests and condemnation by politicians.

Police say she was travelling home on a minibus in the south-eastern seaside province of Mersin last Wednesday when a man tried to rape her, according to reports carried widely in Turkish media.

When she retaliated with pepper spray, the suspect stabbed her and beat her to death with an iron bar before enlisting his father and a friend to help dispose of her body by burning it and dumping it in a river.

A 26-year-old man has been arrested with his accomplices, Hurriyet Daily News reported.

Prosecutors were not immediately available for comment, police could give no more details.

Women nationwide have worn black in condemnation of the murder, posting photos on social media.

The hashtag #sendeanlat, meaning ‘you tell us too’ was trending globally with women sharing stories of abuse on public transport. #OzgecanAslan continued to trend worldwide yesterday.

Several hundred minibuses in Diyarbakir in the southeast were adorned with black ribbons and carried Aslan’s photograph.

Human rights monitor Bianet says 281 women were murdered in Turkey in 2014, a 31% increase on the previous year.