Journalist Sinan Aygül fined 16,660 lira for 'terror propaganda'

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Sinan Aygül, the editor-in-chief of Bitlis News and the chair of the Bitlis Journalists Association, has been sentenced to pay a fine of 16,660 lira (1,804 USD) for "making propaganda for a terrorist organization."

He appeared before a court yesterday (October 14) for violating the conditions of deferral in a previous sentence given to him. In 2018, he was given a deferred prison sentence for the same offense because of a 2015 report on bitlishaber.com.tr, for which he was the editor-in-chief at the time.

In the hearing held at the Bitlis 2nd Heavy Penal Court, Aygül said he would repeat the defense statement he made in 2018. The article subject to litigation was acquired by a software called "news bot" and was published without review, he noted.

The article in question was originally published by now-closed Dicle News Agency. Its headline was "Trenches are a divine right," which apparently referred to the 2015 conflict in Kurdish-majority regions, which were also known as "the trench battles."

Speaking to the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA) after the hearing, Aygül said he will appeal against the ruling. (HA/VK)