The new Turkey
Zehra Özdilek.
Reporter for Cumhuriyet daily

19-Jan-2020

29 November 2019:

Cumhuriyet reporter faces trial after non-prosecution decision

Journalist Zehra Özdilek, a reporter for Cumhuriyet daily, will stand trial on the charge of “making those involved in the fight against terrorism a target” for disclosing the name of a secret witness in an interview she conducted with a teacher dismissed form duty through a statutory decree.

The case was filed although the prosecutor leading the investigation initially issued a non-prosecution decision on the grounds that “the act in question was a journalistic act and was part of press freedom.” The indictment, issued 20 days after the non-prosecution decision, seeks a jail term between one to three years for Özdilek.