Seventeen organizations, including the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA) and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), have condemned the detention of four journalists in an Istanbul-based operation on Feb. 18. In a joint statement, the groups called for the immediate release of the journalists.
The statement and the list of signatories are as follows:
Release journalists detained on Feb 18 now!
As press freedom and human rights organizations, we strongly condemn the detention of four journalists on February 18, 2025, and demand their immediate release.
On the morning of February 18, during an operation led by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office targeting the Peoples’ Democratic Congress (HDK), several artists and politicians were taken into custody alongside journalists Yıldız Tar (Editor-in-Chief, Kaos GL), independent journalist Elif Akgül, İlke TV presenter Ercüment Akdeniz, and journalist Ender İmrek.
Journalists who regularly report from courthouses and stand in solidarity with their prosecuted colleagues were detained in raids instead of being summoned for testimony—a clear attack on press freedom and the public’s right to information.
Their lawyers have been denied access, and the investigation has been placed under a confidentiality order, blocking legal representatives from obtaining any details.
The authorities' refusal to provide information about the detentions and the operation itself is yet another sign of the growing crackdown on press freedom and independent journalism.
This is part of an alarming trend: In January, 18 journalists were detained, nine of whom were arrested. Just in the first two weeks of February, six journalists covering the trustee protests in Van were detained.
The journalists detained in this investigation have long been at the forefront of the fight for press freedom and free expression. They are simply doing their jobs—keeping the public informed.
The government has a duty to ensure that journalists, human rights defenders, and civil society can work freely, without fear of intimidation or repression.
Journalism is not a crime, and no amount of pressure or harassment can silence the truth.
We call for an immediate end to this attack on press freedom and demand the unconditional release of Yıldız Tar, Elif Akgül, Ercüment Akdeniz, and Ender İmrek!
Signatories:
1 Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA)
2 European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF)
3 Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFGD)
4 Association of Journalists (Ankara)
5 Mesopotamia Women Journalists Association (MKG)
6 Women Journalists Association
7 Journalists’ Union of Turkey (TGS)
8 DİSK Basın-İş
9 KESK Haber-Sen
10 International Press Institute (IPI)
11 Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT)
12 Association of Journalists (Gazeteciler Cemiyeti)
13 Progressive Journalists Association (ÇGD)
14 Platform for Independent Journalism (P24)
15 European Federation of Journalists (EFJ)
16 Civil Rights Defenders
17 FIDH (International Federation for Human Rights), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
18 World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
