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Last update: 26-Apr-2020 10:15 |
The second hearing of a trial where Yeni Yaşam columnist Kenan Kırkaya is accused of “spreading propaganda for a terrorist group” over his social media posts took place on 23 January 2020 at Ankara’s 32nd High Criminal Court. The prosecution presented their final opinion of the case during the hearing, asking the court to convict Kırkaya as charged. Granting Kırkaya’s lawyer additional time for the preparation of their final defense statement, the court adjourned the trial until 5 March. 28 November 2019: The final hearing in the trial of journalists Selman Keleş, Özgür Paksoy, Aziz Oruç, Kenan Kırkaya, İshak Yasul and Ersin Çaksu over a number of news reports published in October 2016 in the now-defunct newspaper Özgürlükçü Demokrasi took place on 28 November 2019 at Istanbul’s 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance. Issuing its verdict at the end of the hearing, the court sentenced Yasul, Kırkaya, Paksoy and Keleş to five months in prison each on the charge of “publicly degrading the judicial bodies of the state.” The court separated the files of Oruç and Çaksu. The court deferred the sentences of Yasul, Kırkaya and Paksoy while Keleş’s sentence was suspended.
Journalist Kenan Kırkaya will stand trial on the charge of “successively disseminating propaganda for a terrorist group” over his social media posts from four years ago. The first hearing of his trial, to be overseen by the Ankara 32nd High Criminal Court, is set for 5 December 2019. The indictment, dated 31 July 2019, accuses Kırkaya over the news stories he shared via his social media account and his posts from between 2014 and 2015.
Turkish police on Monday raided homes across Ankara and detained Yeni Yaşam columnist Kenan Kırkaya at least 12 people, including a prominent journalist and pro-Kurdish politician, Turkish news outlet Gazete Karınca reported. In the capital city, police raided a dozen homes shortly after dawn and detained Yeni Yaşam columnist Kenan Kırkaya and Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Ankara head Abuzer Kısa, along with Deniz Aydın, Murat Çeşme, Gülnaz Bozkurt, Simge Aksan, Mahmut Konuk, Özge Çırpan, Burak Aydemir, Selvi Polat, Mehmet Dersulu and İlker Işık, the news site said. Some of the detainees are dismissed civil servants who were protesting the government for dismissals, according to the news outlet. No reason has been given for the arrests. Security forces continued to search journalist Kırkaya's home, Gazete Karınca said, while police took the detainees to Ankara Police Headquarters. Journalist Çağdaş Kaplan on Twitter said Kırkaya had been arrested and released several times, but he continued to take a side of the truth and never surrendered. "Apparently, his attitude offended some people," Kaplan tweeted. |
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