An appeals court in Istanbul on Jan. 16 ruled to keep opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy Enis Berberoğlu in prison, in a trial where he stands accused of providing the Cumhuriyet newspaper with images that suggest that the Turkish government sent weapons to jihadist groups in Syria.
Berberoğlu, who has been imprisoned since June last year was not brought to the courtroom because he refused to be cuffed while being transported to the İstanbul Regional Court of Justice in Maltepe from Silivri Prison. He attended through the judicial video conferencing system SEGBIS.
The politician was sentenced to 25 years inprison on June 14, 2017 and arrested on the same day.
The court, which is hearing a retrial of Berberoğlu after his initial conviction was overruled by a higher court, ruled to keep him in prison. He is accused of “acquiring classified state documents for the purposes of political and military espionage.”
The trial was conducted behind closed doors with no observers press members being allowed inside the courtroom. The closed session is for ensuring “public safety”, the court has said.
Earlier, Cumhuriyet Ankara Bureau Chief Erdem Gül was given five years and former Editor-in-Chief Can Dündar was given five years and ten months in prison for publishing images that allegedly show weapon-laden trucks operated by the National Intelligence Unit (MİT) enroute to Syria.
