This week, journalists and lawyers across Turkey are scheduled to appear in court over various charges related to freedom of expression and the right to report, with social media posts, news content, and press statements commonly cited as grounds for prosecution. Hearings will be held in major cities including Diyarbakır, Istanbul, and Ankara.
Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025
At 9:00 a.m., the sixth hearing in the trial of lawyer Necat Çiçek will take place at the Diyarbakır 5th High Criminal Court. Çiçek is charged with "membership in a terrorist organization" based on the testimony of a cooperating witness, Ümit Akbıyık. The case had been postponed pending the outcome of a related file at the Tekirdağ Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Five minutes later, at the same court, journalist Abdurrahman Gök will appear for the eighth hearing of his trial. Gök is facing charges of "membership in a terrorist organization" and "spreading terrorist propaganda" due to his reporting for the Mezopotamya News Agency and posts on social media. He has been under a travel ban for nearly two years as part of judicial control measures.
At 10:05 a.m., the 14th hearing in the case against journalist Burhan Ekinci will be held at the Istanbul 30th High Criminal Court. Ekinci is represented by the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA) and is being prosecuted for seven social media posts cited as "terrorist propaganda." A warrant for his arrest remains pending.
Five minutes later, at 10:10 a.m., journalist and BirGün columnist Zafer Arapkirli will be tried at the Istanbul 60th Criminal Court of First Instance on charges of "insulting the president." The case stems from a complaint filed on Twitter by Cem Küçük, a columnist for Türkiye newspaper, over a post Arapkirli shared on Oct. 23, 2024, which read: “You’re a terrible screenwriter… You always have been.” The indictment was prepared under Articles 299/1-2 and 53 of the Turkish Penal Code, with permission from the Ministry of Justice.
At 11:00 a.m., journalist Rüstem Batum, represented by MLSA, will face the ninth hearing in a separate "insulting the president" case at the Istanbul 62nd Criminal Court of First Instance. The charges are based on social media posts. A warrant for his arrest remains in effect.
At 11:15 a.m., civil society worker Erdoğan Kayra Kocagil, also represented by MLSA, will appear for the eighth hearing of his trial at the Istanbul 27th Criminal Court of First Instance. Kocagil is charged with violating the Law No. 2911 on Meetings and Demonstrations after participating in a protest at Istanbul’s Boğaziçi University on Nov. 22, 2021.
Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025
At 10:28 a.m., the 24th hearing in the trial of former German MP Memet Kılıç will take place at the Ankara 36th Criminal Court of First Instance. Kılıç is charged with "insulting the president" based on remarks he made in an interview with ABC newspaper titled “Genocide accusation against Erdoğan: Treated like a banana republic.” MLSA is handling his legal defense.
At 10:30 a.m., journalist Rüstem Batum will face another trial at the Istanbul 43rd Criminal Court of First Instance. This case, also represented by MLSA, concerns his comments during a program aired on İMC TV in 2015 and is being prosecuted under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code, which criminalizes "insulting the Turkish nation."
Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025
At 9:42 a.m., journalist Hasan Cemal will appear before the Ankara 24th Criminal Court of First Instance over a Jan. 16, 2016 opinion piece published on the T24 news website. He is charged with "insulting the president."
At 9:50 a.m., the second hearing in the case against journalist Hatice Şahin will be held at the Diyarbakır 9th High Criminal Court. Şahin is accused of "membership in a terrorist organization" in connection with an investigation into the Democratic Society Congress (DTK). The trial had been postponed pending a decision on whether to merge it with another case.
At 10:00 a.m., the Istanbul 62nd Criminal Court of First Instance will hear the second hearing in a case against eight journalists who were detained while covering protests in the Saraçhane district of Istanbul. The defendants — Emre Orman, Kurtuluş Arı, Gökhan Kam, Hayri Tunç, Ali Onur Tosun, Yasin Akgül, Zeynep Ceren Kuray, and Bülent Kılıç — are accused of "participating in an unlawful demonstration" under Law No. 2911.
At 10:45 a.m., the Ankara 68th Criminal Court of First Instance will hold the 11th hearing in a case against 23 individuals detained during a commemoration for the 2015 Suruç bombing, one of the deadliest attacks in Turkey's recent history. Defendants including Birkan Polat, Betül Gökçe Akgöl, Emir Parlak, and Doğuş Özdemir face charges of "violating the Law on Meetings and Demonstrations" and "resisting to prevent public duty."
At 11:35 a.m., the 19th hearing of a trial against journalists Veysi Sarısözen and Osman Akın will take place at the Istanbul 13th High Criminal Court. The charges of "spreading terrorist propaganda" are based on articles published in the pro-Kurdish Yeni Yaşam newspaper. An outstanding arrest warrant remains in place for Sarısözen.
At 11:40 a.m., lawyer Fırat Epözdemir will face the second hearing of his trial at the Istanbul 24th High Criminal Court. He is charged with "membership in a terrorist organization" and "spreading terrorist propaganda." The court had previously decided to send the case file to the prosecutor for a final opinion.
