Diken

12 results arranged by date

Political reporter Altan Sancar threatened at gunpoint in Turkey

Istanbul, March 24, 2022 – Turkish authorities should thoroughly investigate a recent threat against journalist Altan Sancar, determine whether it was related to his work, and ensure the journalist’s safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On Wednesday around 12:30 a.m., Sancar, a reporter for independent news website Diken and independent online radio Özgürüz…

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Turkish court issues suspended prison terms to 5 over reporting on leaked emails

Istanbul, January 4, 2022 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned a Turkish court’s recent sentencing of four journalists and one media worker to suspended prison terms relating to the 2016 coverage of the president’s son-in-law’s leaked emails. On December 31, 2021, the 29th Istanbul Court of Serious Crimes convicted the five of “illegally…

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A raised hand holds a large ID card showing journalists in jail in place of a photo.

Turkish presidency reintroduces press card controls that court found restrictive

On April 1 this year, press freedom groups in Turkey chalked up a small win when the nation’s top administrative court, the Council of State, suspended 2018 rules that made it easier for the authorities to cancel or refuse press cards. The changes had transferred authority over press cards to the presidency and barred them…

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Turkish journalist Levent Gültekin beaten by a mob

Istanbul, March 9, 2021 – Turkish authorities must investigate the mob assault on journalist Levent Gültekin and bring the perpetrators to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.  Gültekin, a columnist for online newspaper Diken and a commentator on Halk TV, both outlets critical of the Turkish government, was attacked by a large group of people…

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In this photo taken from the Turkish side of the border with Syria, in Akcakale, Sanliurfa province, smoke billows from targets inside Syria during bombardment by Turkish forces on October 10, 2019. Turkey has banned critical reports on the assault. (AP/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Turkey bans critical reports on military operation in Syria, detains 2 journalists

Istanbul, October 10, 2019 –Turkish authorities must stop censoring news reports on the country’s military incursion into Syria and detaining or harassing journalists who cover it, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, pictured at a meeting in Ankara on January 1. The president said this week that recent reforms have made Turkey's press more democratic. (AFP/Kayhan Ozer)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of January 7, 2019

Erdoğan says Turkish media is ‘more democratic’ In a message to mark Working Journalists’ Day–a local press freedom day on January 10–Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, “The reforms actualized in the past 16 years have enabled the Turkish press to be richer, diverse, and meet a more democratic and liberal structure,” Duvar reported.

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A phone showing a Twitter error message in 2014. A member of Turkey's opposition party claims police are monitoring social media users as part of a planned crackdown. (Reuters/Dado Ruvic)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of January 15

Newspaper distributor says security officers abducted, beat him Barış Boyraz, a former distributor for the shuttered Kurdish-language daily Azadiya Welat, told the daily newspaper Evrensel that men he believes to be plainclothes police on December 17, 2016, abducted him from the streets of Ankara and beat him.

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Turkey's deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş, pictured in January 2016, said at a news conference this week that the media should be careful while covering sensitive issues. (Adem Altan/AFP)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of December 25

Investigative reporter arrested on propaganda charges The prominent investigative journalist Ahmet Şık was arrested yesterday on allegations of spreading terrorist propaganda. Şık, who was detained in relation to his published writings and posts on social media, was also accused of “publicly humiliating the Republic of Turkey, its judicial organs; military and police organizations,” Cumhuriyet reported.…

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Participants in an August 7, 2016, pro-government rally in Istanbul wear masks depicting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (Reuters/Umit Bektas)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of August 7, 2016

Police detain 42 employees of state broadcaster The official Anatolia News Agency reported today that police detained 42 employees of state broadcaster TRT on suspicion of affiliation with the Hizment movement, which the Turkish government alleges orchestrated a July 15 failed military coup. Anatolia did not named the detainees or their positions at TRT but…

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Riot police use water cannons on crowds protesting the takeover of the Koza-İpek Media group in October 2015. An arrest warrant was issued this week for Tarık Toros, a former journalist at the group. (AP/Mehmet Ali Poyraz, Cihan News Agency)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of July 4

Arrest warrant issued for TV journalist An arrest warrant was issued yesterday for the Turkish journalist Tarık Toros, according to reports. The pro-government daily, Sabah, reported that Toros was one of more than 30 people against whom arrest warrants were issued as part of a police operation against the alleged terrorist group controlled by Fethullah…

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