Cumhuriyet newspaper finance editor and reporter Pelin Ünker and Cumhuriyet Foundation Board Chairman Orhan Erinç appeared before Anadolu 24. Court of First Instance for their second hearing today. Ünker faces slander charges arising out of her reporting on the Panama Papers and the financial activities of former Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım and his sons.
Ünker and her lawyer Abbas Yalçın were present in the courtroom. Erinç did not attend the hearing. Yalçın requested that the case be merged with other cases concerning the same news articles which are being heard in İstanbul. The judge agreed to notify the İstanbul courts of the request and consult with them about a decision.
The judge then adjourned the hearing indefinitely until an agreement between the courts has been reached.
Updated: December 6 2018
