Journalist Müyesser Yıldız Arrested

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Detained in the capital city of Ankara on June 8, Odatv Ankara News Director Müyesser Yıldız has been arrested while TELE1 Ankara Representative İsmail Dükel has been released on probation.

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Müyesser Yıldız and İbrahim Dükel were taken into custody as part of an investigation launched by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on charge of "political and military espionage."

After the related formalities were completed at the security directorate journalists Müyesser Yıldız and İsmail Dükel and non-commissioned officer E.B. were referred to courthouse. Following their interrogation by Deputy Public Prosecutor of the Terror Crimes Investigation Bureau, they were referred to court with a request for their arrest.

While Yıldız and E.B. have been arrested by the Penal Judgeship of Peace, Dükel has been released on probation.

As the reason for the arrest of the two, the judgeship has indicated that there were strong criminal suspicions suggesting the committal of the offense of "disclosing information and documents as to the security of the state" as per the Article 329 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) and that there is a possibility of spoliation of evidence and escape.

'You imprison 83 million people'

Later in the day, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) MP Utku Çakırözer has slammed her arrest in his speech at the Parliament.

Holding the picture of the Müyesser Yıldız and İsmail Dükel while waiting in the hall of the courthouse, Çakırözer has briefly stated the following:

"On the one side, you say here, 'We will get closer to the European Union;' on the other, two journalists were detained in house raids in the morning just because they talked to the ones who called them, they were held in custody for four days and then brought before the investigating judge. Now, one of them is arrested. No matter what laws we pass in the Parliament, it will make no sense if journalists working for people's right to get information are sent to jail, we cannot get closer to the European Union even an inch."

Referring to the FETÖ, which is held responsible for the coup attempt on June 15, 2016, Çakırözer as also said, "Putting journalists in jail with old FETÖ tactics and new plots is a shame of democracy and law. When even a single journalist is deprived of her freedom, it means 83 million people lose their freedom. Journalists who make news for the people's right to get information need to be freed immediately."

4 Odatv journalists behind bars

Odatv News Director Barış Terkoğlu and Odatv reporter Hülya Kılınç were arrested on March 4 over a news report regarding the death of a National Intelligence Organization (MİT) officer in Libya. The İstanbul 4th Penal Judgeship of Peace charged the journalists with "violating the MİT Law."

As part of the same investigation, daily Yeni Yaşam Editor-in-Chief Ferhat Çelik and Managing Editor Aydın Keser as well as daily Yeniçağ columnist Murat Ağırel were also arrested.

Summoned to depose on March 3 as part of the same investigation, Odatv Editor-in-Chief Barış Pehlivan was also arrested on March 6. With Müyesser Yıldız, the number of arrested Odatv journalists has increased to four.

What happened?

In house raids in Ankara in early morning hours on June 8, TELE 1 news channel / website Ankara Representative İsmail Dükel and Odatv Ankara News Director Müyesser Yıldız were taken into custody.

The detention of Dükel was announced by TELE1 Editor-in-Chief Merdan Yanardağ on social media. "Our friend, TELE 1 Ankara Representative İsmail Dükel, was detained at 7.30 a.m. this morning, the reason for his detention is unknown," Yanardağ said on Twitter and added, "The prosecutor's office has given four days for detention." (EMK/SD)