Dog of police officer killed in İzmir attack waits for his return

Banu Şen - İZMİR

A dog cared for by police officer Fethi Sekin, who was described as a hero after preventing a larger-scale attack outside an İzmir courthouse on Jan. 5, has continued to wait at the spot where he lost his life in the assault.Sekin, who had worked in front of the courthouse for 10 years until the attack, looked after a stray dog named Zeytin near the facility. Camera footage of the attack also showed Zeytin running after Sekin during the incident.The militants allegedly sought to enter the courthouse where they presumably would have caused a greater loss of life, but they were prevented from doing so by Sekin’s actions. Sekin was killed in a subsequent clash with the militants, while a stray bullet also killed court employee Musa Can as he watched from a window.The dog has reportedly stayed in the area where Sekin was killed.Some friends of the killed officer also said he loved animals almost as much as people.Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called the man’s family to express his condolences on Jan. 8.Ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy chair Öznur Çalık visited the officer’s widow, Rabia Sekin, and his family in the eastern province of Elazığ. Erdoğan expressed his condolences via Çalık’s phone, saying he hoped Sekin would rest in peace.“You know, our martyrs’ place is the nearest place to our dear prophet. Thus, you will be mentioned as a martyr’s wife and your place will be near him in the eternal universe,” he said.Erdoğan also said Sekin had prevented a massacre with his sacrifice.“Our brother Fethi prevented a serious disaster in there. In fact, he also became a second Ömer. We have been saying there was not just one Ömer Halisdemir. We will walk differently to the future with this example,” he said.Halisdemir was one of the first loyalist soldiers to die during the July 15, 2016, coup attempt after killing one of the main coup plotters, Semih Terzi.Sekin’s wife also asked Erdoğan that he help look after her children.“My children lost their father, but they have another father in you. I want you to look after them,” she said.Erdoğan responded, saying the Turkish state accepted the children of fallen soldiers as a trust.“The state of the Republic of Turkey is strong to protect these trusts. Do not worry about this. We will stand by them, including in their education,” he said.