Prosecutor Hayri Demir has appealed the acquittal of three journalists in a case where eight employees of MA and JinNews were sentenced to six years and three months in prison for "membership in a terrorist organization." The appeal has been filed with the appellate court.
In Ankara, the prosecutor appealed the acquittal of journalists Habibe Eren, Mehmet Günhan, and Ceylan Şahinli in a case involving employees of Mezopotamya Agency (MA) and JinNews. While eight journalists received prison sentences, the prosecutor is now challenging the acquittal of the three, seeking their conviction on charges of being members of a terrorist organization.
Grounds for appeal: Hundreds of posts and alleged news reports
The appeal argues that MA and JinNews were “established under a legal guise” and that the journalists should be punished for their involvement in disseminating what the prosecution deems propaganda. The indictment cites numerous posts and reports allegedly supporting the notion that the PKK leader is held under unlawful conditions, promoting hunger strikes, and accusing the state of attacking the Kurdish population.
The prosecutor claims the journalists engaged in these activities through their work at the news agencies.
Case background
The investigation began on October 20, 2022, leading to the detention of MA’s Chief Editor Diren Yurtsever, MA Ankara News Chief Deniz Nazlım, MA reporters Berivan Altan, Selman Güzelyüz, Hakan Yalçın, Emrullah Acar, Ceylan Şahinli, and JinNews reporters Habibe Eren and Öznur Değer. They were arrested on October 29, 2022. Hamdullah Bayram, a Yeni Yaşam newspaper distributor, was also detained on March 20, 2023.
The indictment against 11 journalists, spanning 210 pages, accused them of “membership in a terrorist organization,” based on their affiliations with their respective news agencies, the editorial policies of those agencies, their articles, language used in reports, social media posts, confiscated banned books and magazines, participation in events for news coverage, communications with colleagues and sources, memberships in the Dicle Fırat Journalists Association, and financial transactions involving payments for news and visuals. Additionally, 129 articles were labeled as “so-called news” and cited as evidence against them.
At the first hearing on May 16, 2023, 10 journalists were released, but Bayram’s case was separated from the main trial.
In the final hearing on July 3, Yurtsever, Altan, Güzelyüz, Yalçın, Acar, Ağgöz, Nazlım, and Değer were sentenced to six years and three months in prison for “membership in a terrorist organization,” while three journalists were acquitted.
