ANKARA, Turkey, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Turkish soldiers' complaints of maltreatment by military commanders have prompted a parliamentary commission to set up a panel to investigate, an official said.

Today's Zaman reported Parliamentary Human Rights Commission President Ayhan Sefer Ustun said the sub-commission is being formed to look into recent complaints of maltreatment as well as numerous soldiers' suicides.


"The Turkish Armed Forces is like a closed box. What happens there is generally not being let out," Ustun said.

He said the sub-commission can investigate military training battalions and rooms used for solitary confinement and hopes the armed forces cooperate.

The European Court of Human Rights recently ruled it's a violation of human rights for a commander to confine a soldier to his room during his compulsory military service, and Turkey's Ministry of Defense is reportedly working on a regulation that would ban the practice, Today's Zaman said.

Military service is mandatory in Turkey for all men over 18 and in good health, with length of service depending on education level and the military's needs.