The prosecutor, presenting their final opinion on the case, has alleged that the three journalists “engaged in activities linked to the PKK/KCK” due to their news reports and social media posts

CANSU PİŞKİN, ISTANBUL

The sixth hearing in the trial in which journalists Esra Solin Dal, Mehmet Aslan, and Erdoğan Alayumat are charged with “membership in a terrorist organization was held at the Istanbul 25th High Criminal Court on 7 April 2026.

Erdoğan Alayumat’s lawyer, Hazal Sümeli, was present at the hearing, which was monitored by P24. The journalists on trial did not attend the hearing.

In presenting their final opinion on the case, the prosecutor requested that Esra Solin Dal, Mehmet Aslan, and Erdoğan Alayumat be sentenced for the impugned crime. In the opinion, the content of numerous news reports produced by the journalists while working for the Mezopotamya Agency (MA) was cited as evidence. Additionally, it was alleged that the defendants’ social media posts were of a nature that praised and legitimized the organization. The prosecution further argued that communications found in digital materials and contacts with certain individuals also supported the charges.

Lawyer Sümeli requested additional time to file a response to the prosecutor’s opinion.

The court granted the request and postponed the trial until 9 June 2026.

Bakcground of the case

Mezopotamya Agency (MA) reporters Esra Solin Dal, Mehmet Aslan, and journalist Erdoğan Alayumat were detained on 23 April 2024 as part of an investigation being conducted in Istanbul. The journalists, who were held in custody for three days, were imprisoned pending trial on 26 April 2024 by the court on charges of “membership in a terrorist organization.”

The indictment against Dal, Aslan, and Alayumat was filed on 8 May 2024. In the indictment, the journalists’ monitoring of press statements and their contact with news sources who made these statements or were interviewed for reports were cited as “evidence of guilt” for the charge of “membership in a terrorist organization.” The Istanbul 25th High Criminal Court, which accepted the indictment, released the journalists on the same day under judicial control measures, imposing conditions that they not leave the country and not leave their place of residence.