Bianet

14 results arranged by date

Fırat Can Arslan

Turkish authorities detain 5 journalists over tweet, 1 remains in custody

Istanbul, July 26, 2023—Turkish authorities should immediately release reporter Fırat Can Arslan and stop treating journalists like criminals, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On Tuesday, July 25, Turkish police detained Arslan, a reporter for the pro-Kurdish Mezopotamya News Agency, at his house in the capital city of Ankara, in relation to an investigation…

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15 journalists, media worker jailed under pre-trial arrest in Turkey

Istanbul, June 16, 2022 – Turkish authorities should immediately release the 15 journalists and one media worker still being held after last week’s mass detention of 19 journalists, two media workers, and one source for allegedly being members of a terrorist organization, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. A Turkish court in the southeastern…

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Istanbul police beat, tear gas, detain journalists while breaking up public protest

Istanbul, June 2, 2022 – Turkish authorities should take concrete steps to prevent police violence toward members of the press in the country after several journalists were beaten and detained while covering a recent protest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On Tuesday evening, at least six journalists were detained by Istanbul police while…

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Turkey to begin retrial of RSF representative, other press freedom advocates on terrorism charges

Istanbul, February 1, 2021 – Turkish authorities should immediately drop all charges against the journalists and press freedom advocates currently facing a second trial on trumped-up terrorism charges, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On February 3, the Thirteenth Istanbul Court of Serious Crimes is scheduled to begin hearings in the retrial of Erol…

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Journalist Evrim Kepenek is seen while covering COVID-19 in Istanbul, Turkey. (Evrim Kepenek)

For Turkish journalists, fear of contracting COVID-19 competes with fear of arrest

Journalist Evrim Kepenek works in Istanbul as the women and LGBTI+ news editor for the independent news website Bianet. Like most people, she works from home these days, but she is also a street reporter who recently observed twin fears among the Turkish public: getting infected with COVID-19 and getting arrested for talking about it.

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Journalists hold placards on January 10, 2016, during a march in Istanbul as they protest against the imprisonment of journalists. On July 16, 2019, a Turkish court ordered service providers to block access to several news sites. (AFP/Ozan Kose)

Turkish court orders service providers to block access to news sites

Istanbul, August 6, 2019–An Ankara court on July 16 ordered Turkish internet service providers to block access in Turkey to 136 web addresses, independent news website Bianet reported today. The blocked addresses include the websites of news outlets Bianet, ETHA news agency, Halkın Sesi TV, Özgür Gelecek, osp.org, geziyisavunuyoruz.org, Gazete Fersude, Yeni Demokratik Gençlik, Umut…

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A man shops at the gallery on August 16, 2018 near the Istiklal avenue, at Beyoglu district, in Istanbul. (AFP/Ozan Kose)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of August 13, 2018

Capital Markets Board issues warning on coverage of financial markets The Turkish Capital Markets Board (SPK) said in a statement that Article 107 of the Law no. 6362 on “market fraud” will be used against those who “spread fabricated, false and fallacious news about the economy,” independent news website Bianet reported on August 13. The…

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Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of March 5

Erdoğan says jailed Die Welt correspondent ‘German agent,’ Kurdish separatist Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on March 3 said that Deniz Yücel, the Turkey correspondent for the German newspaper Die Welt and a dual citizen of Germany and Turkey jailed in Turkey since February 14, was a “German agent” and a member of the Kurdistan…

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News anchor Banu Guven (L) gets ready for a news broadcast at a studio of IMC TV, a news broadcaster slated for closure, in Istanbul, Turkey, September 30, 2016. (Reuters/Huseyin Aldemir)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of October 2

Reporter arraigned on terrorism charges for Facebook posts The Mersin Court of Penal Peace last night arraigned Cemil Uğur, a reporter for the left-wing Evrensel newspaper, on charges of “being member of a [terrorist] organization,” and “propagandizing for a [terrorist] organization,” his employer reported. Police held Uğur for 16 days in August, before a court…

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan adjusts his earpiece at the conclusion of the G20 summit in Hangzhou, China, September 5, 2016. (Reuters/Damir Sagolj)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of September 4

Police raid Kurdish magazine office Police raided Istanbul office of the pro-Kurdish magazine Özgür Halk today, the pro-Kurdish Dicle News Agency (DİHA) reported. DİHA reported that the raid, which was in progress at the time of publication, was related to the magazine’s feature commemorating August 15, the date the banned Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) took…

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