Turkey / Europe & Central Asia

  
A criminal court in the northeast city of Gümüşhane ordered 69 X accounts, including those of at least three journalists and a media outlet, to be blocked from access inside Turkey. Here, X’s headquarters are shown in downtown San Francisco, California, on July 30, 2023. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)

Turkish court orders social media accounts blocked despite ruling that banned police ‘virtual patrolling’

Istanbul, August 27, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists urges X, formerly Twitter, site administrators not to comply with a Turkish court’s order to block accounts belonging to several journalists and media outlets. “Turkish authorities continue to practice the ‘virtual patrolling’ and censorship of social media users under the false guise of national security,” said Gulnoza…

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CPJ joins call for Turkish authorities to revoke decision canceling radio’s license

The Committee to Protect Journalists joined 17 press freedom and human rights organizations in a Wednesday, July 10 statement asking Turkey’s official media watchdog RTÜK to revoke its cancellation of independent Açık Radyo’s (The Open Radio) broadcast license. In May, RTÜK fined and issued a gag order after the outlet mentioned the mass killings of…

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A composite image of a woman holding a camera, a man standing in a field, and the remains of a car after it was hit by a strike.

Strike injures 2 Iraqi Kurdish reporters in Sinjar

UPDATE: Çira TV reporter Murad Mirza died on July 11 of injuries sustained in the drone strike. He was buried on July 12 in the Girê Gewir Cemetery, according to his outlet.  Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, July 10, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Turkish and Iraqi authorities to investigate after a suspected Turkish strike injured two Iraqi…

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The Turkish flag flies at the Consulate General of Turkey in New York on Nov. 17, 2023. (Photo: AP/Richard Drew)

CPJ joins call for new European authorities to support media freedom in Turkey

The Committee to Protect Journalists joined 18 press freedom and human rights organizations in a Tuesday statement asking the new European Commission and the new European Parliament to prioritize press freedom and freedom of speech in dealings with Turkey. The signatories asked the European authorities to “provide support, including direct financial grants, to media organizations”…

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Two police officers salute in front of a group of people.

Turkish court sentences 8 Kurdish journalists to 6 years

Istanbul, July 3, 2024—Turkish authorities should not contest the appeals of eight journalists sentenced to six years and three months in prison on Wednesday and stop prosecuting journalists with baseless claims of terrorism, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. The 4th Ankara Court of Serious Crimes convicted eight journalists on charges of membership in…

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A man talks to a camera in front of a bookcase.

CPJ welcomes acquittal of Turkish journalist Sezgin Kartal

Istanbul, June 25, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomed an Istanbul court’s Tuesday acquittal of journalist Sezgin Kartal on the charge of being a member of a terrorist organization. “We are pleased with the acquittal of journalist Sezgin Kartal, but let us not forget that the case against him was built on next to no…

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A man speaks to the camera at a desk.

Turkish journalist Murat Ağırel suspects spying on his house, family

Istanbul, June 14, 2024—Turkish authorities must do everything in their power to provide security for journalist Murat Ağırel and his family to protect them from harassment and intrusions, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. Ağırel, a columnist for Cumhuriyet, a daily known for its critical coverage of the government, said he observed people wandering…

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A man holds a cell phone and speaks in front of a book shelf.

CPJ welcomes sentencing of 7 involved in 2019 beating of Turkish journalist

Istanbul, June 13, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes a Turkish court’s sentencing of seven people involved in the May 10, 2019, attack on columnist and TV commentator Yavuz Selim Demirağ in the capital, Ankara. The 36th Ankara Court of Serious Crimes on Tuesday, June 11, sentenced seven men to nine years in prison each…

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Sinan Aygül

Turkish prosecutors charge journalist Sinan Aygül for threatening his attackers 

Istanbul, May 22, 2024 – Turkish authorities must drop charges against journalist Sinan Aygül alleging that he threatened the men who attacked him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday.  In June 2023, Aygül, chief editor of the privately owned local news website Bitlis News and chair of the local trade group Bitlis Journalists Society, was hospitalized after he was…

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On May 10, a Turkish court sentenced seven people involved in the April 8, 2022 raid on Deniz Postası’s broadcast studio, during which attackers beat journalist Azim Deniz and his guest. (Screenshot: Deniz Postasi Tv/YouTube)

CPJ welcomes Turkish court’s sentencing of people involved in the attack on TV studio Deniz Postası

Istanbul, May 17, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes a Turkish court’s sentencing of seven people involved in the April 8, 2022 raid on Deniz Postası’s broadcast studio in the central Province of Kayseri, during which attackers beat journalist Azim Deniz and his guest, local businessman and politician Sedat Kılınç.  At least 50 people raided the studio,…

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