Trustee appointed to the Halk TV; Oya Lale Arslan released; Osman Kavala’s request for retrial rejected despite ECtHR ruling; two journalists detained

Police raid Halk TV, trustee appointed to the dissident channel

On the morning of 14 October, another operation was carried out against a media outlet in Turkey. Police teams entered the Istanbul headquarters of opposition channel Halk TV, owned by Cafer Mahiroğlu, in the early hours of the morning; the channel’s broadcasts were interrupted and a trustee was appointed to the company’s management.

The appointment of a trustee to Halk TV was carried out as part of an investigation against the channel’s owner, Cafer Mahiroğlu. The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office stated in its announcement that administrators had also been appointed by the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) to other companies owned by Mahiroğlu. It was announced that detention warrants had been issued for 17 people as part of the investigation. The prosecutor’s office stated that 11 people were taken into custody. Officers from the Financial Crimes Unit and the Smuggling and Organized Crime Unit also carried out a search at the channel’s headquarters in Zeytinburnu, Istanbul.

Mahiroğlu, who is residing abroad, posted a message on his X account stating, “The leader of the ‘Butlan’ (nullity) movement, Kılıçdaroğlu, and his team can be happy. The police are at Halk TV.” CHP Leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who had returned to his post as the court’s absolute nullity decision, had accused Halk TV of “broadcasting false news 24 hours a day” during a program he appeared on at KRT TV. Regarding Mahiroğlu, he had also said, “In which country in the world is there a television channel whose owner is in a foreign country yet broadcasts in their own country?”

According to a report on the channel’s website, Halk TV’s Editor-in-Chief Suat Toktaş requested that the live broadcast continue, but the head of trustee committee refused. 

The trustee committee is headed by İbrahim Paşalı. Paşalı, who once wrote for pro-government Yeni Şafak daily and hosted programs on TVNET, has recently been associated with the trustee committees appointed to media outlets targeted by recent operations. Paşalı had previously been involved in the management of Flash Haber and EkoTürk, followed by Habertürk, Show TV and Bloomberg HT. He was subsequently appointed as a trustee for TELE 1, owned by Merdan Yanardağ, who was later jailed as part of a political espionage investigation.

Release order issued for Oya Lale Arslan

A release order has been issued for journalist Oya Lale Özan Arslan. The development was announced by Çağlar Çağlayan, lawyer for Arslan, who has been in prison for approximately 40 days.

Arslan, who had been targeted via social media platforms and YouTube broadcasts, was imprisoned pending trial on 4 September on charges of “spreading false information” and “terrorism propaganda.”

Bahadır Özgür detained

Journalist and Halk TV columnist Bahadır Özgür was taken into custody on 15 October on charges of over his reports on the stock market scandal. Furthermore, access to his X account was blocked as well.

Bengü Şap Babaeker, editor-in-chief of the channel, to which a trustee was appointed on 14 October, announced Özgür’s detention via her X account. 

Özgür, who was taken to the Istanbul Police Headquarters on Vatan Caddesi, was reportedly detained on charges of “breaching the confidentiality of an investigation” as part of an inquiry being conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.

In his statement taken at the police station, Bahadır Özgür stated that in the news article in question, he had “not included any documents or records subject to a confidentiality order.”

Following police procedures, Özgür was taken to the courthouse, where the public prosecutor’s office referred him to court with requests for  judicial supervision involving an international travel ban and regular signing-in.

The court, finding the public prosecutor’s request appropriate, issued a judicial supervision order against Özgür in the form of an international travel ban and a requirement to report regularly.

Murat Ağırel taken into custody

Murat Ağırel, a writer for the Cumhuriyet newspaper who had been under house arrest for reporting on the stock market scandal, was taken into custody on the morning of 16 October.

A search was carried out at Ağırel’s home, after which he was taken to the Istanbul Police Headquarters.

In addition to Ağırel, politicians Aylin Kotil and Ömer Sarıgül were also taken into custody, whilst it was announced that arrest warrants had been issued for Emir Sarıgül, Volkan Aslanbaş and Cavidan Tanrah Artuner.

Twelve journalists sacked at İzmir-based Manşetiz

Twelve journalists working at Manşetiz, a digital news portal based in Izmir, were sacked after demanding payment of their outstanding wages and meal voucher fees.

The journalists stated that their access to the news system had been blocked and that, despite being on standby ready to work for three days, they were dismissed on the grounds of absenteeism.

It was reported that the salaries and backdated meal voucher payments of editors and reporters working at Manşetiz had been in arrears for months. The employees stated that the company management had dismissed them after they demanded payment of their outstanding wages.

Osman Kavala’s request for retrial rejected

The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, in a legal opinion submitted at the court’s request, argued that the Constitutional Court had not yet issued its ruling on Kavala’s case and that domestic legal remedies had not been exhausted, thereby requesting that the application be rejected.

In its supplementary ruling dated 13 October 2026, the Istanbul 13th High Criminal Court ruled to reject the requests made by Kavala’s lawyers for a stay of execution, the release of their client and a retrial, in accordance with Articles 318 and 318/3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The court ruled that the enforcement of the judgement dated 25 April 2022 should continue.

The court’s decision emphasized that domestic legal remedies must be exhausted before applying to the ECtHR. In the reasoning, it was stated that, in accordance with general principles recognized in international law, applicants must first apply to national judicial authorities and utilize existing legal remedies. The judgment stated, “To accept otherwise would constitute an interference with a sovereign state’s independent exercise of its judicial authority, thereby exceeding the jurisdiction of an international court.” 

The judgment noted that, for the applicants to lodge an application with the ECtHR, the domestic legal application must have been made before the competent and authorized authority. “However, it is evident from the decision in question in our court’s file that a ruling was issued without the condition of exhausting domestic legal remedies having been fulfilled,” it was stated. It was also noted that an appeal against the decision may be lodged with the Istanbul 14th High Criminal Court within two weeks of the service of the reasoned decision.

Osman Kavala was sentenced to an aggravated life sentence on 25 April 2022 in the Gezi Park case on charges of “attempting to overthrow the government.”

RTÜK imposes fines on Sözcü TV and Koza TV over remarks on "funding" scandal

The Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) decided to impose an administrative fine of 3 percent on Sözcü TV and Koza TV over their broadcasts relating to the funding investigation.

At its meeting, RTÜK assessed the content relating to the funding investigation broadcast on Sözcü TV and Koza TV. The Council based its decision to impose sanctions on the two channels on the grounds that the language used in the broadcasts influenced viewers’ opinions and contained allegations of wrongdoing against political groups.

Sözcü TV was fined for the manner in which allegations concerning Trade Minister Ömer Bolat and AKP Spokesperson Ömer Çelik were addressed in programmes broadcast on 7 and 8 October. RTÜK concluded that the broadcasts in question prevented viewers from forming accurate and sound opinions.

Sanctions were imposed on Koza TV due to the statement “We are talking about a scandal involving all the names in the ruling party,” which was used in a program broadcast on 8 October regarding a funding investigation. The Council adopted the view that these words constituted a serious accusation against all members of a particular political group.

Investigation launched against Sözcü TV presenter Serap Belovacıklı

The Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation against Sözcü TV presenter Serap Belovacıklı on charges of “inciting the public to hatred and hostility.”

Belovacıklı’s social media posts were cited as the grounds for the investigation, which was initiated ex officio.

YENİ Party MP Ümit Özlale, in his statement regarding the fund embezzlement, had alleged that the father of Mahinur Özdemir Göktaş, the Minister for Family and Social Services, had also carried out transactions involving substantial sums. Following the denial of this allegation, Özlale became the target of figures close to the government. Özlale’s wife, Serap Belovacıklı, posted messages on her social media account reacting to the criticism, before subsequently deleting them.

AKP files damages claim against BirGün TV, Timur Soykan, Şaban Sevinç and Zeynel Emre

Citing broadcasts and statements regarding the fund embezzlement, the AKP brought a TL 600,000 damages claim against BirGün TV and Timur Soykan. Separate claims of TL 500,000 each were also filed against Şaban Sevinç and YENİ Party Spokesperson Zeynel Emre.

In the lawsuit brought over statements regarding the fund embezzlement, the broadcasts by Timur Soykan and BirGün TV on 26 September, 3 and 10 October; Şaban Sevinç’s broadcasts on 28–30 September and 1 and 8 October; and Zeynel Emre’s statements on 12 October were cited as grounds for the claim.

LeMan case adjourned until February 2027

The third hearing in the case filed against satirical LeMan magazine Editor-in-Chief Mehmet Tuncay Akgün, Managing Editor Zafer Aknar, Managing Editor Aslan Özdemir, graphic designer Cebrail Okçu, office manager Ali Yavuz, and illustrator Doğan Pehlevan on charges of “publicly inciting the people to hatred and hostility through the press and publications” over a cartoon published in the magazine was held at the Istanbul 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance on 13 October 2026.

Present in the courtroom were the editor-in-chief, Aslan Özdemir, and the lawyers representing the other defendants in the case: Fikret İlkiz, Samet Fidan and Utku Can Akyol. The magazine’s editor-in-chief, Tuncay Akgün, did not attend the hearing as he was abroad.

Muhammed Hasan Medineli, who had applied to join the case as co-plaintiff in the proceedings at the previous hearing but had been rejected by the court, also wished to attend and sought to sit with the plaintiffs. The judge reminded Medineli that his request had been rejected and ordered him to be removed from the courtroom. It was subsequently announced that the subpoena proceedings concerning Tuncay Akgün could not be completed due to missing documents. The defense lawyers requested that the missing information be provided. The prosecutor, however, requested that Tuncay Akgün’s case be separated from the main proceedings. Lawyer Fikret İlkiz objected to the prosecutor’s request.

The court ruled that the legal assistance proceedings should continue once the deficiencies in the legal assistance documents had been rectified. The court ruled that the prosecutor’s request to separate Tuncay Akgün’s file would be considered at the next hearing and adjourned the trial until 2 February 2027.

Retrial of Hatice Duman adjourned until December

The retrial of Hatice Duman, who faces charges of “leading a terrorist organization” and “membership in a terrorist organisation," resumed at the 12th Istanbul High Criminal Court on 15 October.

The trial was adjourned until 15 December 2026.

At least 25 journalists and media workers in prison

Following the release of Lale Oya Arslan, as of 16 October 2026, there are at least 25 journalists and media workers in prison in Turkey, either imprisoned pending trial or serving a sentence.

The full list can be accessed here.