Turkey
2016
Journalist trapped and injured while reporting in besieged Turkish town dies
New York, February 24, 2016–A news editor for the Kurdish-language daily Azadiya Welat, who had been trapped with a gunshot wound in Cizre since January 22, has died. Authorities used DNA testing to identify the remains of Rohat Aktaş, local reports said today. The exact circumstances of his death are unclear. Pro-opposition and pro-Kurdish media…
Two newspaper offices firebombed in Istanbul
New York, February 11, 2016–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns today’s attacks on the Istanbul offices of the daily newspapers Yeni Akit and Yeni Şafak. The newspapers are generally supportive of Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
CPJ concerned for safety of injured journalist trapped in Turkish city
New York, February 4, 2016–The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned for the safety of Rohat Aktaş, a news editor and reporter for the Kurdish-language daily Azadiya Welat, who has been trapped in the southeastern town of Cizre with a gunshot wound since January 22.
CPJ Newsletter: January
Turkey releases jailed Iraqi journalist Following months of advocacy by VICE News, CPJ, and other groups, Iraqi journalist Mohammed Ismael Rasool was released from Turkish prison on January 5. Rasool was arrested in August along with his VICE News colleagues, Jake Hanrahan and Philip Pendlebury, while they were reporting from southeastern Diyarbakir province. The three…
Jailed Turkish journalists face multiple life sentences
New York, January 27, 2016 — Turkish prosecutors should immediately drop all charges against Can Dündar and Erdem Gül, journalists at the daily newspaper Cumhuriyet, and release them without delay, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Two Kurdish journalists jailed in southeast Turkey
Istanbul, January 12, 2016–Turkish authorities should immediately release two Kurdish journalists jailed in southeast Turkey since last week and drop all charges against them, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The arrests follow the detentions of at least three other journalists working for pro-Kurdish news outlets in December.
For journalists fleeing Islamic State, Turkey ‘is as dangerous as Syria’
For the past two years, activists and journalists seeking refuge from Islamic State repression in Raqqa would take sanctuary across the border in southern Turkey, setting up safe houses and offices, and darting back to Syria regularly with camera equipment and other vital supplies. But that sanctuary is now under threat.