Sevim Üçöz, the widow of a captain who was killed in a terrorist attack in southeastern Turkey on Tuesday, refused to shake hands with Turkish Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar during her husband’s funeral ceremony on Wednesday, according to Turkish media reports.
Capt. Murat Üçöz, 33, was killed in the Çukurca district of Hakkari province in an attack on a military convoy by outlawed the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants.
A funeral was held for Üçöz in Ankara which was attended by top state officials. When Gen. Akar approached Sevim Üçöz and extended his hand to offer his condolences, the woman refused to shake hands with the army chief, which was captured by cameras.
Turkish authorities had conducted direct talks with jailed PKK chief Abdullah Öcalan for several years until a truce in effect collapsed in the summer of 2015. Since then, there have been heavy clashes between the PKK and Turkish security forces leading to deaths on both sides.