Deniz Tekin
A Turkish court has acquitted all defendants in a case against Vice News journalists Jake Hanrahan and Philip Pendlebury, who had been on trial since 2016 on charges of aiding a terrorist organization.
The 22nd hearing of the case was held at the Diyarbakır 8th High Criminal Court in southeastern Turkey. The two British journalists, who had previously been deported, did not attend the session, but their lawyer was present.
In the prosecution’s final opinion, the prosecutor requested convictions for all defendants based on the charges outlined in the indictment. However, the journalists' lawyer, Törehan Büyüksoy, rejected the accusations, arguing that his clients were journalists who had come to Turkey solely for their reporting work. He called for their acquittal.
The court ruled that the legal elements of the alleged crime were not present and acquitted all defendants.
Background
Jake Hanrahan and Philip Pendlebury, both working for U.S.-based Vice News, were arrested along with their translator Mohammed Ismael Rasool and their local guide Abdurrahman Direkçi on Aug. 28, 2015, in Diyarbakır. The journalists were in Turkey to film a documentary about the government-imposed curfews in conflict zones such as Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin, and Sur—areas affected by clashes between Turkish security forces and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a group designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., and the EU.
They were detained at their hotel following a tip-off and later charged with “knowingly and willingly aiding a terrorist organization.” The British journalists and their translator were placed in pretrial detention, while their Turkish guide was released pending trial. Hanrahan and Pendlebury were held in Adana F-Type Prison until their release and deportation on Sept. 3, 2015. Their translator, Iraqi citizen Mohammed Ismael Rasool, was released months later on Jan. 4, 2016.
The indictment accused the defendants of “knowingly and willingly aiding a terrorist organization,” “violating the Law on the Prevention of the Financing of Terrorism,” and “engaging in terrorist propaganda.” Prosecutors had sought prison sentences ranging from 15 to 67 years, citing as evidence the money in their possession, video footage they had filmed, and their news notes.
