Politics

Turkey journalist critical of Erdogan faces jail term


Turkish prosecutors are seeking a minimum of five years in jail for political commentator Fatih Altayli, accused of threatening President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a rights group said on Thursday. 

The journalist, arrested on June 22 and placed in provisional detention near Istanbul, has more than 2.8 million followers on X and 1.5 million subscribers on YouTube, where he hosts a daily show. 

While discussing a poll showing that some 70 percent of people in Turkey oppose Erdogan becoming president for life, Altayli on his YouTube channel pointed to the fact that several of the Ottoman Empire’s sultans ended up either “assassinated” or “strangled”. 

On Thursday, prosecutors submitted an indictment to the court in which they argue that Altayli’s social media comment was a “threat of an attack on (Erdogan’s) life”, rights group MLSA announced on X. 

In a statement during the investigation, Altayli has denied the accusation, insisting that he had merely offered “elements of historical context”, without intending to threaten Erdogan. 

In the indictment, the prosecution also said the video where the journalist made the comment was publicly disseminated and reached a wide audience, arguing that the act was carried out with “intent to communicate”, according to MLSA. 


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Reporters Without Borders places Turkey 159 out of 180 in its world press freedom rankings, sandwiched between Pakistan and Venezuela.

Under current rules, Erdogan — who served as prime minister between 2003 and 2014 before becoming president — is not allowed to run for a fourth term when his mandate expires in 2028.

But the 71-year-old could attempt to maintain his grip on power by calling early elections or reforming Turkey’s constitution.

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© Agence France-Presse



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