Furkan Doğan (20 October 1991 – 31 May 2010) was a
Turkish American
Turkish Americans ( tr, Türk Amerikalılar) or American Turks are Americans of ethnic Turkish origin. The term "Turkish Americans" can therefore refer to ethnic Turkish immigrants to the United States, as well as their American-born descend ...
who was residing in Turkey permanently.
["Furkan Doğan'ın Babasi Oğlum Amerikan Vatandaşı Olduğuna Güvenip Yola Çıktı"](_blank)
Milliyet
''Milliyet'' ( Turkish for "''nationality''") is a Turkish daily newspaper published in Istanbul, Turkey.
History and profile
''Milliyet'' came to publishing life at the Nuri Akça press in Babıali, Istanbul as a daily private newspaper on 3 ...
, 6 June 2010 He was the youngest person killed by the
IDF
IDF or idf may refer to:
Defence forces
* Irish Defence Forces
* Israel Defense Forces
*Iceland Defense Force, of the US Armed Forces, 1951-2006
* Indian Defence Force, a part-time force, 1917
Organizations
* Israeli Diving Federation
* Interac ...
on the
MV Mavi Marmara
MV ''Mavi Marmara'' is a Comoros-flagged passenger ship, which was formerly owned and operated by İDO Istanbul Fast Ferries Co. Inc. on the line Sarayburnu, Istanbul-Marmara Island- Avşa Island in the Sea of Marmara. Built at the Golden G ...
, in the
Gaza flotilla raid
The Gaza flotilla raid was a military operation by Israel against six civilian ships of the " Gaza Freedom Flotilla" on 31 May 2010 in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea. Nine activists and no Israelis were killed on one ship dur ...
and became a political symbol after his death.
Early life
Furkan Doğan was born to ethnic Turkish parents in
Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the county seat of Rensselaer County. The city is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany a ...
["Turkey Buries Flotilla's U.S. Teen"](_blank)
Marc Champion, ''The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'', 5 June 2010 in the United States and moved to
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
at the age of two.
He was a high school student at Kayseri Özel Hisarcıklıoğlu Fen Lisesi in
Kayseri, Turkey
Kayseri (; el, Καισάρεια) is a large industrialised city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social ...
. He wanted to study medicine.
He had planned to visit New York in the summer of 2010.
His father, Ahmet Doğan, who graduated from
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute () (RPI) is a private research university in Troy, New York, with an additional campus in Hartford, Connecticut. A third campus in Groton, Connecticut closed in 2018. RPI was established in 1824 by Stephen Van ...
with an MBA in accounting, is an assistant professor of accounting at
Erciyes University
Erciyes University ( tr, Erciyes Üniversitesi) is a Turkish institute of higher education located in Kayseri, Turkey. As of 4 April 2019, a total of 64,194 students were studying for their bachelor's degree and postgraduate studies.
Background ...
.
Gaza flotilla and Doğan's death
Dogan was not intensely interested in politics, and his participation in the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, was volunteered by himself.
[ He was killed in the ]Gaza flotilla raid
The Gaza flotilla raid was a military operation by Israel against six civilian ships of the " Gaza Freedom Flotilla" on 31 May 2010 in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea. Nine activists and no Israelis were killed on one ship dur ...
. In his final diary entry written on the ship, he wrote about the beauty of martyrdom:
''"It is the last hours to martyrdom
A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external ...
, insha'Allah
''In sha'Allah'' (; ar, إِنْ شَاءَ ٱللَّٰهُ, ʾIn shāʾ Allāh ), also spelled In shaa Allah, InshAllah, Insya Allah and İnşAllah is an Arabic language expression meaning "if god wills" or "god willing". It was mentioned i ...
. I am wondering if there is a more beautiful thing. The more beautiful thing is only my mother, but I'm not sure. The comparison is very difficult. Martyrdom or my mother? Now, the hall has been evacuated. So far people were not serious, but they have become serious recently."''
An autopsy revealed he had suffered five gunshot wounds, to the nose, back, back of the head, left leg, and left ankle, at a distance of 45 centimeters. A UNHCR concluded he was also shot at after he fell wounded on the floor. He was shot when he was filming the events in the ship. This video was also posted at the on-line news collective This Can't Be Happening
The US alleges the autopsy report was never handed over to US authorities despite repeated requests to that effect.
Reactions to his death
On 3 June 2010, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
confirmed his death and said U.S. officials had met with Doğan's father to express their condolences. Clinton said, "Protecting the welfare of American citizens is a fundamental responsibility of our government and one that we take very seriously. We are in constant contact with the Israeli Government, attempting to obtain more information about our citizens."
U.S. authorities in Turkey have offered U.S. consular services. His funeral service was held at the Fatih Mosque
The large Fatih Mosque ( tr, Fatih Camii, "Conqueror's Mosque" in English) is an Ottoman mosque off Fevzi Paşa Caddesi in the Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey. The original mosque was constructed between 1463 and 1470 on the site of the Ch ...
in Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
on 3 June 2010
The American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) condemned the attack. ''The Christian Science Monitor'' reported that his US citizenship may make it difficult to avoid a diplomatic confrontation between the US and Israel.
The Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician serving as the List of presidents of Turkey, 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as prime minister of Turkey from 2003 to 2014 and as Lis ...
, criticized the USA Government for being silent after Doğan's death. He asked: "Why is his death not followed by the USA, is it because of his Turkish origin?"
Center for Constitutional Rights lawsuit
In May 2011, the Center for Constitutional Rights
The Center for Constitutional Rights[The Center for Constitutional Rights](_blank)
(CCR) is a Freedom of Information Act Freedom of Information Act may refer to the following legislations in different jurisdictions which mandate the national government to disclose certain data to the general public upon request:
* Freedom of Information Act 1982, the Australian act
* ...
lawsuit against the U.S. government to release documents related to its knowledge and role in the attack, which it has thus far blocked."Rights group brings FOIA suit on 2010 Israeli raid"
Reuters. 26 May 2011. Accessed 12 June 2011
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dogan, Furkan
Israel–United States relations
Deaths by firearm in international waters
People from Troy, New York
American people of Turkish descent
American emigrants to Turkey
1991 births
2010 deaths
Gaza flotilla victims