According to a Turkish official, Turkey is requesting an explanation from Somalia after Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud, the president’s son, fled the nation after a fatal traffic accident involving his use of a diplomatic car.
According to Turkish media, on 30 November, Mohamed Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud, the son, struck and seriously injured a motorbike courier in central Istanbul while operating a Somali consulate vehicle. At the time of the accident, the Turkish official, claimed to be driving a car with a diplomatic licence plate. “Someone who does not have diplomatic status has no right to use these vehicles,” the official further said. “Information was requested about this (from Somalia).”
The official stated that Turkey’s justice ministry was in charge of the procedure and that it did not matter that the son of the president of Somalia was operating a car with a diplomatic licence plate in the absence of “immunity or diplomatic exceptionality”.
According to an Istanbul prosecutor’s office statement on Friday, Yunus Emre Gocer, a 38-year-old motorcyclist, remained hospitalised while the son of the president of Somalia departed Turkey on December 2 following his release from police interrogation.
However, the prosecutor’s office stated that an international arrest warrant for the son of the president of Somalia was issued following Gocer’s death on December 6 in a hospital.
Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc announced on social media platform X on Sunday that an investigation has been opened into the police officers who conducted an initial assessment of the accident.
“We said we will follow the judicial process, but the suspect walked away,” Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu wrote on X on Friday.
Turkey, which has strong relations to Somalia, has seen a public uproar in response to media reports about the incident.
