Necmiye Alpay, Aslı Erdoğan, Zana Kaya Released

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Jailed pending trial, charged with “Terror organization membership”, author Aslı Erdoğan, Özgür Gündem newspaper’s Editor-in-Chief Zana Kaya and linguist Necmiye Alpay have been released.

The court ruled continuation of detention for newspaper's managing editor İnan Kızılkaya. Furthermore, imposing international travel ban on Erdoğan and Alpay, the court ruled that the prison staff, who didn't bring Kaya and Kızılkaya to court due to "lack of personnel and vehicle", be determined and filed a criminal complaint against the staff.

Özgür Gündem case

İstanbul 8th Criminal Court of Peace closed Özgür Gündem daily on August 16 on charge of “[illegal] organization propaganda”.

After a short while of the daily’s closing, Riot Squad Police raided daily’s building in İstanbul’s Beyoğlu district.

Özgür Gündem’s Publishing Consultancy Board Member and author Aslı Erdoğan was arrested on August 19.

Daily’s Editor-in-Chief Zana Kaya and Chief Clerk İnan Kızılkaya were arrested on August 22.

Necmiye Alpay was arrested on August 31.

The indictment demands jail term for all suspects over Turkish Penal Code's clauses regulating crimes of "Disrupting integrity of state", "Armed organization", "Founding an organization with the aim to commit crime", and "propagandizing for terror organization". (EA/TK)