A Turkish military doctor has filed a legal challenge after being dismissed from the armed forces, alleging she was expelled in retaliation for reporting serious health, hygiene and safety failures affecting conscripts at a military training base, the TR724 news website reported.
In court filings and public statements Dr. Efran Tumaris Usul said she repeatedly reported alleged medical neglect and unsafe conditions through military channels before escalating her complaints to civilian authorities. She was later referred to a military disciplinary board and expelled from the military on grounds of “indiscipline,” a decision she argues was intended to silence her. The allegations have not been independently verified.
According to media reports and statements by Usul, the physician first sought to address the problems through the military chain of command after observing what she described as serious deficiencies in the treatment of conscripts during her assignment at a recruit training unit.
She said she filed numerous incident reports and submitted written petitions to commanders but received no response. After her internal complaints failed to produce results, she reported the alleged irregularities to the presidency’s Communications Center (CİMER), a government complaint platform, and to civilian prosecutors.
Following those complaints, Usul was referred to the Turkish Armed Forces’ High Disciplinary Board and dismissed from military service for alleged indiscipline. She has challenged the decision in an administrative court, arguing that the disciplinary proceedings were retaliation for exposing misconduct rather than a legitimate disciplinary measure.
In her court filings and public statements, Usul alleged that commanders instructed medical staff to distribute expired medications to conscripts while newly delivered drugs remained in storage instead of being issued.
She also alleged that soldiers lacked access to safe drinking water, forcing them to drink tap water, and that some recruits were prevented from showering for more than two weeks, contributing to outbreaks of infectious diseases, including scabies.
Among her most serious allegations, Usul said emergency oxygen cylinders at the infirmary were empty, preventing doctors from treating soldiers suffering severe asthma or allergic attacks. She also alleged that ambulances were unavailable during medical emergencies because officers had taken them off the base for personal use, delaying the transport of soldiers with serious injuries, including head trauma and internal bleeding, to hospitals.
Usul further claimed that military commanders routinely overruled doctors’ medical decisions by refusing to honor legally issued medical leave and exemption reports for conscripts whom they believed were exaggerating their illnesses.
She said that after objecting to the alleged practices, she faced retaliation, including being barred from entering the officers’ dining hall and having meals delivered to her room by conscripts.
Usul has said her decision to report the alleged abuses was guided by medical ethics and her family’s military background.
“I am the daughter of a military officer,” she said in public remarks. “My father served as an officer throughout his career, and I never saw him ask a conscript to carry out personal tasks. I could not remain silent about what I witnessed.”
The Turkish Defense Ministry has not publicly responded in detail to Usul’s allegations. It has also not publicly explained whether any investigation was opened into the conditions she reported.
Turkey maintains compulsory military service for most male citizens, and military personnel are generally expected to address grievances through the chain of command. Usul’s case has fueled public debate over whether military personnel who report alleged wrongdoing receive adequate protection from retaliation.
This article is republished from the Stockholm Center for Freedom.