ECtHR rules against Turkey in the Osman Kavala case; investigation launched into British economist Timothy Ash for “insulting the president”; Dilek Gappi, Chair of the İzmir Journalists’ Association, summoned for questioning

The ECtHR rules against Turkey in the Osman Kavala case

The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) announced its ruling on 25 August in Strasbourg regarding philanthropist and businessperson Osman Kavala’s second application. The Court found Turkey guilty of violating five separate articles of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The Court ruled that there had been violations of the right to freedom of expression (Article 10), the right to freedom of assembly and association (Article 11), the right to a fair trial (Article 6(1)), the right to liberty and security (Article 5(1)), and Article 18 concerning the limitations on rights. It also found that the aggravated life sentence, which excludes the possibility of conditional release, violated Article 3, which prohibits torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, due to the absence of a review mechanism.

At the heart of the ruling is the finding regarding Kavala’s conviction, handed down on 25 April 2022.

The Court ruled that this conviction resulted from a trial constituting a “flagrant denial of justice.” According to the judgment, the trial was marred by serious and fundamental deficiencies that undermined the fairness of the proceedings and the guarantees of the independence and impartiality of the courts. The Court stated that these deficiencies revealed an arbitrariness that went beyond a mere error in the interpretation of domestic law.

Consequently, it was ruled that Kavala’s “post-conviction” detention was not “lawful” within the meaning of Article 5(1).

The Court further found that the manner in which Article 312 of the Turkish Penal Code was interpreted in the context of the Gezi Park events had expanded the scope of the provision in an unforeseeable manner and failed to provide the minimum safeguards against arbitrary interference.

Kavala has been in detention since 18 October 2017.

In its initial judgment of 10 December 2019, the ECtHR ruled that the detention violated Article 5(1) and (4), as well as Article 18, and stated that Turkey must ensure his immediate release.

As Kavala was not released, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe referred the case to the Court under the infringement procedure in February 2022. On 11 July 2022, the ECtHR ruled that Turkey had failed to fulfill its obligation to comply with the 2019 judgment. This mechanism had been used only for the second time in the history of the ECtHR.

Kavala was sentenced to an aggravated life sentence in Istanbul on 25 April 2022; the judgement became final after passing through the appeal and cassation stages.

The latest ruling was issued by the Grand Chamber and is final; there is no further right of appeal. Its implementation will be subject to the supervision of the Committee of Ministers.

Investigation into British economist Timothy Ash for “insulting the president”

The Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has initiated an ex officio investigation against British economist Timothy Ash on charges of “insulting the President” after he mentioned the name of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan whilst criticizing world leaders at a financial conference attended by businesspeople in Bodrum, Muğla.

During his presentation, Ash analyzed the current state of world politics and argued that it was the personal interests of leaders, rather than those of states, that took precedence; he had stated that we were living in an “age of sociopathic leaders.”

Citing US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu as examples of this, Ash went on to mention AKP President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan by name. Realizing what he had done, Ash cut himself off and addressed the audience in a tone laced with humour, saying, “Stop the video. It is okay. It will be on the front page of Sabah [newspaper] tomorrow.”

Investigation launched in Aydın against three journalists on suspicion of “spreading misleading information”

An investigation has been launched against Emin Aydın, the representative of the Aydın Denge newspaper, Editor-in-Chief Yeşim Ülken and reporter İslam Keleş on the grounds of “spreading misleading information.”

The investigation was opened following a post on the newspaper’s Facebook account stating “Erdoğan has died.” It was later established that the post actually referred to the obituary of a citizen named “Gülşen Erdoğan.”

Dilek Gappi, Chair of the İzmir Journalists’ Association, summoned for questioning

Dilek Gappi, Chair of the İzmir Journalists’ Association, who had issued a statement titled “Journalists Are Not Anyone’s Order-Takers” in response to the attitude of AKP and MHP officials towards journalists in İzmir, has been summoned for questioning.

Veysel Şahin, the MHP’s İzmir Provincial Chairman, had telephoned Gamze Eskiköy, a reporter for Dijitalgaste.com who had covered the tension that arose at a gathering organized in support of the “Turkey Without Terrorism” process, demanding that the article be removed. It was subsequently alleged that Şahin had telephoned the newspaper’s Editor-in-Chief, Ümit Özmen, and insulted him.

Furthermore, Eyyüp Kadir İnan, AKP General Secretary and Member of Parliament for İzmir, responded to an article suggesting that a visit would take place to persuade the Mayor of Bergama to switch from the YENİ Party to the AKP during the ground-breaking ceremony for the “Menemen City Archive and Museum,” stating: “O you rag of a journalist, I am telling you right here, what you have written is rubbish.”

The İzmir Journalists’ Association also issued a press statement in response to these developments, titled “Journalists Are Not Anyone’s Order-Takers.”

Journalists Yavuz Oğhan and Şaban Sevinç present their defenses in IBB case

During the second week of the second hearing in the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) trial—in which 414 defendants, including Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and journalists Ruşen Çakır, Soner Yalçın, Yavuz Oğhan and Şaban Sevinç, are on trial—Yavuz Oğhan and Şaban Sevinç presented their defenses. The hearing took place in the new courtroom built in front of the Marmara Closed Prison and Correctional Facility in Silivri by the Istanbul 33rd High Criminal Court.

Oğhan, who is on trial on charges of “aiding a criminal organization,” presented his defense on 26 August. Oğhan, who stated that he had been a journalist for 35 years, said that they were facing a humiliating charge. Describing the process of giving a statement at the police station, Oğhan said, “We went through a process where those in charge did not use the term ‘detention’; when I asked, ‘If I am not under detention, can I leave?’, I was told ‘no’.”

Oğhan, noting that he was charged on the basis of a statement by a secret witness, said, “The evidence presented to us consisted of mobile phone records. There are allegations that I met with Murat Ongun and that I met with Emrah Bağdatlı. I have never met Bağdatlı; I do not know him.”

“There are over a hundred mobile phone location records, most of them in Beşiktaş. Both my home and my office are in Beşiktaş. It appears as though I spoke to Emrah Bağdatlı every time I went to the office,” he added.

Sevinç, who is on trial on the same charges, said, “I have always stayed within the bounds of the law throughout my life. I have never been part of any illegal group or criminal organization. I have worked as a journalist for Turkey’s most important and influential media outlets. I have reported on all of Turkey’s politicians on numerous occasions. This is the first time something like this has happened to me.”

Describing himself as a “freethinking journalist,” Sevinç stated that he had never taken orders or instructions from any individual or institution throughout his professional career. Sevinç said, “No one can give me orders or instructions. Certainly, no one would dare to say, ‘Do this story, do that story’ in exchange for a particular benefit or money.”

The trial continues with statements from the other defendants.

Investigation into the Narin Güran documentary

An investigation has been launched into the documentary “Şeytantepe,” published on the 140journos YouTube channel, concerning the murder of Narin Güran.

The investigation, opened by the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office following an application by the Diyarbakır Provincial Gendarmerie Command and JASAT, has been launched “within the scope of activities aimed at discrediting the investigation and prosecution processes.” As part of the investigation, individuals involved in the filming, production and financing of the documentary, as well as the financial transactions between these individuals, have come under scrutiny.

Narin, the 8-year-old daughter of the Güran family, who live in the rural Tavşantepe neighbourhood in the Diyarbakır’s Bağlar district, left home on 21 August 2024 to attend a Qur’an class at the mosque and was never heard from again. Search operations, involving approximately 2,000 personnel, also included a special team sent from Ankara. On 8 September, the 19th day of the search, Narin’s body was found in the Eğertutmaz Stream, approximately 2 kilometers from the Tavşantepe neighbourhood.

At least 19 journalists and media workers in prison

As of 28 August 2026, at least 19 journalists and media workers are in prison in Turkey, either imprisoned pending trial or serving a sentence.

The full list can be accessed here.