2 Arrested Defendants of Social Media Trial Released

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In the second hearing of the trial held before Çağlayan 29th Assize Court in which six journalists and media workers were standing trial due to their posts on social media, the two arrested defendants of the trial, Tunca Öğreten and Mahir Kanaat have been released pending trial.

After 323 days in detention pending trial, Diken News Site former editor Öğreten and BirGün daily employee Kanaat have been released on probation and an international travel ban has been imposed on them.

The next hearing of the trial will be held on April 3, 2018.

Social media trial

In the same social media trial, six journalists and media workers are being tried, namely: Now-closed Dicle News Agency - DİHA (closed through a statutory decree) News Director Ömer Çelik, DİHA reporter Metin Yoksu, Yolculuk daily Editor-in-Chief Eray Sargın, Etkin News Agency (ETHA) News Director Derya Okatan, Diken News Site former editor Tunca Öğreten and BirGün daily employee Mahir Kanaat.

CLICK - Social Media Trial of 6 Journalists Begins Today

The six defendants are being tried for reporting on the emails of Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Berat Albayrak being hacked and leaked by the hacktivist group RedHack.

The charges pressed against them are "terror propaganda, blocking, damaging, destroying or erasing IT systems".

The Chief Judge of the social media trial held before İstanbul 29th Assize Court is Mustafa Çakar.

Çakar was also the judge of Istanbul 9th Criminal Court of Peace that ordered the arrests of the defendants of the Cumhuriyet Trial, journalist Meşale Tolu, Die Welt reporter Deniz Yücel and Özgür Gündem Daily's Consultant Board member Aslı Erdoğan.

Judges Özkan Gürel and Ümit Kartlı are also on the board of judges.

(AS/DG)