Deniz Tekin
11 June - In the trial of journalist Sofya Alağaş, the court has decided to write to the Diyarbakır Police Department to locate a confidential witness who provided testimony 12 years ago. The witness's statement is crucial to the case where Alağaş is charged with "membership in a terrorist organization" due to her journalistic activities.
The fourth hearing of Sofya Alağaş's trial took place at the Diyarbakır 5th High Criminal Court. Alağaş, the co-mayor of Siirt and former editor of JIN NEWS, did not attend, but her lawyer Resul Temur was present. Representatives from DİSK Basın İş Diyarbakır and several journalists observed the proceedings, along with three plainclothes police officers.
The prosecutor requested the completion of deficiencies in the case file. Lawyer Temur argued, "The case file is entirely based on news articles published by JIN NEWS. As an online news outlet, JIN NEWS is subject to a four-month statute of limitations for lawsuits. Thus, there is no legal basis for this prosecution. We also request the removal of the travel ban on my client."
At the conclusion of the hearing, the court ordered the Diyarbakır Police Department to locate the confidential witness from a 12-year-old investigation. This witness's testimony had previously led to a dismissal, which was later overturned and combined with Alağaş's current case. The court will decide whether to hear the witness in court after receiving a response from the police. The court also maintained Alağaş’s travel ban and adjourned the trial to October 22.
**About the case**
Sofya Alağaş, elected co-mayor of Siirt in the last local elections, was arrested along with 15 journalists during an investigation by the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. On June 16, 2022, Alağaş was detained on charges of "membership in a terrorist organization." Her case was later separated from that of the other detained journalists.
The 383-page indictment against Alağaş cites news images, headlines, language, and editorial policy from JIN NEWS, along with the website’s access ban, as evidence. Other alleged evidence includes reports of Alağaş receiving journalism awards, owning JIN NEWS, articles published by the agency, and interviews she gave to the press. The indictment claims her articles incite violence, blame the state, foster sympathy for the organization, and constitute "PKK journalism."
At the first hearing on June 15, 2023, the Diyarbakır 5th High Criminal Court imposed a travel ban on Alağaş but released her from detention.
