Journalist Lütfiye Burcu Kara, a reporter for the leftist Mücadele Birliği newspaper, was acquitted of “membership in an armed organization” due to lack of evidence, following her third hearing at the İzmir 2nd High Criminal Court on May 22, 2025.
Kara and her lawyer, Şule Arslan, rejected the charges and requested acquittal. Arslan emphasized that Kara’s journalism could not be construed as criminal activity, stating, “The witness statements are not backed by concrete evidence, and there is no activity linking my client to membership in any organization.”
Prosecutor had already called for acquittal
At the second hearing on April 15, the prosecution presented its final opinion, stating that Kara could not be linked to the charges through concrete evidence and called for her acquittal. The prosecutor said that Kara had worked as an intern at Yeni Dönem Yayıncılık and occasionally contributed news reports to Mücadele Birliği, attending various demonstrations in her capacity as a journalist.
The prosecution noted that neither phone records nor physical surveillance had yielded any criminal findings. It also stated that the testimony of a secret witness and another witness, Buse Aslan, lacked sufficient specificity or supporting evidence.
Witness claims not found credible
In the April 15 hearing, witness Buse Aslan, appearing via videoconference, accused Kara of being linked to the outlawed Communist Labor Party of Turkey / Leninist (TKEP/L) and alleged that she served as a “media officer” within the group. Aslan also claimed that Kara shared video footage with the organization through the encrypted messaging app Signal. However, the prosecution found these claims unsupported by concrete evidence and ultimately inadequate.
Background
Kara was arrested on Sept. 28, 2024, during a raid targeting Mücadele Birliği and was detained until her release on Feb. 20, 2025. The indictment against her relied primarily on testimony from a secret witness and Buse Aslan and accused her of “membership in an armed organization.” At the conclusion of the trial, she was acquitted due to insufficient evidence.
