Journalist İsmail Arı jailed; Furkan Karabay’s house arrest and international travel ban lifted; Ali Ergin Demirhan’s prison sentence increased; ECtHR convenes once again for Osman Kavala’s case

“They wanted to arrest me for a year”: Journalist İsmail Arı jailed

BirGün reporter İsmail Arı was placed in pre-trial detention on 23 March 2026 on charges of “spreading false information.”

Arı was detained a day earlier in the Turhal district of Tokat, where he had traveled to visit his family during the Ramadan holiday. As part of an investigation led by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, he was transferred to Ankara on Sunday, 23 March, and brought to the courthouse in the evening of the same day after giving his statement at the police station.

During questioning, Arı, through his lawyers, stated that he was detained “because of a video from three months ago.”

The court ordered his imprisonment pending trial. Arı has said that additional social media posts and previous video content are continually being added to the case file, arguing, “They want to inflate the file to justify my imprisonment.”

In another message sent after his transfer to Sincan Prison near Ankara, Arı said: “They had been trying to arrest me for the past year. The decision had already been made. The wolf had long set its sights on the lamb. But I will not remain silent. Those who detained me are the ones committing a crime.”

Nearly 100 journalists and colleagues gathered in Istanbul on 23 March, just hours after his detention, to call for his release. Demonstrations were also held in other cities, including Ankara, İzmir, Eskişehir, Mersin, and Malatya.

Arı, who reports on urban transformation, local corruption, and bribery, is known for investigative work that frequently attracts public attention and has often been the subject of legal action. In a show of solidarity, his seat on his weekly program on BirGün’s YouTube channel was left empty.

Furkan Karabay’s house arrest and international travel ban lifted

A new decision has been issued regarding journalist Furkan Karabay, who was detained on 23 January on charges of “spreading false information” as part of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) investigation, and subsequently released under judicial supervision measures.

The judicial supervision measures regarding Karabay, who has been under house arrest since 23 January, namely the “prohibition on leaving his residence” and the “ban on leaving the country,” have been lifted ex officio by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.

Ali Ergin Demirhan’s prison sentence for the Charlie Hebdo report increased

Prison sentence of a member of the editorial board of sendika.org, Ali Ergin Demirhan, who was sentenced to prison on charges of “publicly insulting religious values embraced by a segment of the public,” was increased from 3 months and 22 days to 5 months at the end of the hearing held at the Istanbul 26th Criminal Court of First Instance on 24 March.

In the case filed against Demirhan, citing a 2015 article published on sendika.org regarding Charlie Hebdo, the Istanbul 29th Criminal Court of First Instance had imposed a prison sentence of 3 months and 22 days in 2015. Following an appeal against this decision, the case was reheard by the Istanbul 26th Criminal Court of First Instance.

Tuba Güneş, Demirhan’s lawyer, argued the following in court: “The depiction of a Muslim man with tears in his eyes in the cartoon states, ‘This massacre is not the work of Muslims; we do not accept that the massacre was committed in the name of the Prophet Muhammad.’ To put it even more clearly, the cartoon does not insult Muslims or the Prophet Muhammad; rather, it makes them partners in their own grief. It is impossible to interpret the cartoon as an insult to the Prophet Muhammad.”

Güneş explained that the content had been classified as freedom of expression by the Constitutional Court, arguing, “The Supreme Court overturned the sentence in a case involving the same incident, the same subject, and the same charges as ours. It will be concluded that the publication in question, by reproducing the content of another publication that exercised freedom of expression, constitutes the exercise of freedom of expression, press freedom, and the right to report news.”

After hearing the defenses, the court announced its decision, increasing the sentence imposed on Demirhan at the 24 March hearing to 5 months.

Lawyer Güneş stated that they would appeal the decision, arguing that the court had failed to consider the precedents of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, and the European Court of Human Rights, and that the eight-year statute of limitations for the case had also expired.

In 2015, 12 people were killed in an attack on the Charlie Hebdo office in Paris, allegedly because the magazine had published insulting cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad. Following the attack, the magazine used a new cover for an issue published under the headline “All Is Forgiven.”

In Turkey, some websites had also featured a Turkish translation of that issue, but access to the content in question was blocked shortly thereafter.

A lawsuit was also filed against Ali Ergin Demirhan, a member of the Editorial Board of the sendika.org website, which had been blocked for using the Turkish translation of the magazine’s cover.

In Demirhan’s individual application to the Constitutional Court, a ruling was issued finding a violation of press and freedom of expression due to the complete blocking of access to the website; following the ruling, the restrictions on the relevant content were lifted.

Journalist Akyol attacked in Diyarbakır

Another incident has been added to the spiral of violence against journalists in Turkey, this time in Diyarbakır. Journalist Abdullah Akyol was attacked on 24 March 2026, while filming near the On Gözlü Köprü by a group of approximately 10 people allegedly consisting of employees and owners of a local business. Akyol, who sustained injuries to his head and arm from the blows, went to the Sur Çarşı Police Station to file a complaint against the attackers.

In his statement to the police, Akyol recounted that while he was filming the water level of the Dicle River, a man in his 60s or 65 grabbed him by the arm, saying, “How dare you tarnish our honor? You have targeted the café,” and forcibly dragged him into the kitchen area of a business, where he was subjected to insults and threats.

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Journalists detained while covering the news to stand trial

An indictment has been filed against 28 individuals, including Mezopotamya Agency (MA) reporter Zeynep Durgut, JinNews reporter Derya Ren, and Ajansa Welat reporter Mahmut Altıntaş, on charges of “resisting a police officer” and “participating unarmed in unlawful assemblies and demonstrations and refusing to disperse voluntarily despite warnings.”

The indictment, filed by the Silopi Chief Public Prosecutor, has been accepted by the Silopi Criminal Court of First Instance.

The first hearing will be held on 13 May 2026.

Mezopotamya Agency (MA) reporter Zeynep Durgut, JinNews reporter Derya Ren, and Ajansa Welat reporter Mahmut Altıntaş were beaten and detained while covering the protest initiated by women members of the Council of Peace Mothers in Şırnak on 15 October 2024, under the slogan “No to war, peace now.” As a result of the police and military intervention, 25 people, including the journalists and one child, were detained.

Prosecutor demands life imprisonment in Hakan Tosun murder case

The indictment into the killing of journalist Hakan Tosun in Istanbul’s Esenyurt district has been completed on 24 March 2026, with prosecutors seeking aggravated life sentences for two defendants. The Bakırköy 17th High Criminal Court accepted the indictment and scheduled the first hearing for 6 May 2026.

Tosun was found on the street on 11 October 2025 after being severely beaten and was taken to hospital with a brain hemorrhage. He was admitted to intensive care in an unconscious state, without identification, and his family could not initially be reached.

He died in hospital on 14 October. Tosun was known for his reporting on environmental issues and for documenting cases of ecological destruction across Turkey.

The ECtHR convenes once again for Osman Kavala’s case

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has convened once again regarding Osman Kavala.

A hearing was held on 25 March at the Grand Chamber, comprising 17 judges and serving as the ECtHR’s appellate body, to consider Kavala’s second application.

The hearing, presided over by ECtHR President Mattias Guyomar, included Turkish judge Saadet Yüksel among the 17-judge panel.

Turkey was represented at the hearing by a delegation led by Abdullah Aydın, Head of the Human Rights Department at the Ministry of Justice.

Osman Kavala was represented by a delegation led by Prof. Dr. Philip Leach and Prof. Dr. Başak Çalı.

The defendant’s side reiterated the arguments the Turkish government has been advancing since 2013 regarding the Gezi Park protests, which served as the primary justification for Kavala’s imprisonment.

While the emphasis on the fact that Kavala’s imprisonment was based on concrete evidence was frequently reiterated, government representatives requested that the ECtHR rule that Turkey had not violated the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

Kavala’s lawyers, noting that he is a human rights defender and a civil society activist, argued that their client has been unjustly and arbitrarily kept in prison for over eight years as a result of the “blatant abuse of the criminal justice system, which has been instrumentalized to silence him.”

Citing the ECtHR’s previous rulings, the lawyers argued that Kavala must be released immediately.

Michael O’Flaherty, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, who joined the case as a third party, stated that the current proceedings stem from the failure to implement the ECtHR’s earlier rulings regarding Kavala.

In a written statement, Kavala recalled the ECtHR’s 2019 and 2022 rulings and expressed his belief that the new decision would follow the same line. Noting that compliance with the decisions of the ECtHR and the Constitutional Court is a “constitutional obligation,” Kavala said, “The right to liberty cannot be restricted without reliable and credible evidence demonstrating that a crime has been committed.”

Following a hearing in Strasbourg that lasted more than two and a half hours, the Grand Chamber did not immediately announce its decision. With the conclusion of the hearing, the decision-making process has begun.

The Grand Chamber is under no obligation to announce its decisions according to a fixed schedule. The decision-making process generally takes between 1 and 3 years to conclude. This period can be even longer.

Businessman and rights defender Osman Kavala, known for his work in the civil society sector, was arrested on 18 October 2017, and imprisoned pending trial on 1 November 2017. The case centered on the 2013 Gezi Park protests.

Kavala was acquitted in this case in 2020, and a release order was issued for him. On the same day, he was re-detained and jailed as part of an ongoing case involving charges of “attempting to overthrow the constitutional order.”

In this case, Kavala was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment on charges of “attempting to overthrow the government of the Republic of Turkey or prevent it from performing its duties.” The decision was upheld by the Court of Cassation.

Kavala, however, denies the charges and states that he underwent a trial process in which “the presumption of innocence was violated, and baseless allegations and false statements were used.”

Trial of Zafer Arapkirli adjourned

The fourth hearing in the trial of journalist Zafer Arapkirli on charges of “inciting the public to hatred and hostility” and “spreading false information” over a social media post was held at the Istanbul 23rd Criminal Court of First Instance on 27 March 2026.

The trial was postponed until 14 April because the judge was on leave.

Altan Sancar appears in court on charges of “spreading false information”

The first hearing in the trial of Altan Sancar, who serves as an advisor to the CHP, was held on 24 March 2025. The case was filed on charges of “spreading false information” over a social media post from his time as a journalist. Sancar gave his initial statement in the case filed at the Ankara 27th Criminal Court of First Instance via a directive at the Seferihisar 3rd Criminal Court of First Instance.

In his statement, Sancar confirmed that the post in question was his own and noted that the process known as the “absolut nullity case,” which was filed against the CHP, was a topic of public discussion at the time he shared the post.

Explaining that he had shared his insights as a journalist, Sancar noted that a campaign had been launched against him on social media, followed by the filing of this case against him.

Sancar finally requested an acquittal and did not ask for additional time to prepare his defense.

The next hearing will take place on 9 April 2026.

Sancar is on trial over a post in which he stated, “CHP’ye kayyım atanacağına dair duyumlar geliyor”(There are reports that a trustee will be appointed to the CHP.)

Court lifts weekly sign-in on LeMan cartoonist but keeps in place international travel ban

The third hearing in the trial of LeMan cartoonist Doğan Pehlevan, who is charged with “insulting the president” over social media posts attributed to him, was held at the Istanbul 36th Criminal Court of First Instance on 24 March 2026.

Pehlevan and his lawyers attended the hearing, which was monitored by P24. His lawyer argued that the alleged offense had not been committed and requested the lifting of judicial control measures. The lawyer representing President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, however, maintained the complaint and sought Pehlevan’s punishment.

The court lifted the requirement for Pehlevan to sign in weekly but upheld the international travel ban. The trial was adjourned until 14 July 2026.

Pehlevan had been detained along with five other LeMan staff members on 30 June 2025 following a social media campaign targeting a cartoon allegedly depicting Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Moses. While the other defendants were later released pending trial, prosecutors opened a separate case against Pehlevan for allegedly insulting the president, leaving him facing parallel proceedings. He was released on 18 November 2025 after spending 139 days in pre-trial detention.

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Trial of singer Ferhat Tunç adjourned until November

The 18th hearing in the trial of singer Ferhat Tunç on the charge of “terrorism propaganda” was held at the Istanbul 37th High Criminal Court on 24 March 2026.

No one attended the hearing.

The trial was adjourned until 3 September 2026.

At least 26 journalists and media workers behind bars in Turkey

As of 13 March 2026, following the imprisonment of journalist İsmail Arı, there are now at least 26 journalists and media workers in prison in Turkey, either awaiting trial or serving finalized sentences.

The full list can be accessed here.