Turkiye: Women Press Freedom Calls for Immediate Release of Journalist Elif Akgül
February 21, 2025 - Turkiye, Istanbul
Women Press Freedom condemns the arrest of journalist Elif Akgül. Criminalizing journalism under the guise of security concerns is an attack on press freedom.
Akgül, detained during a series of house raids across ten provinces on February 18, was formally arrested on February 21 on allegations of "strong suspicion of committing a crime" due to purported links with civil and political platform the Peoples' Democratic Congress (HDK).
Akgül is being targeted for attending HDK meetings as a journalist. The Turkish authorities are using her reporting as a pretext to silence independent journalism. The so-called “evidence” against Akgül includes wiretaps from 2011-2014—recorded by now-discredited judicial officials. This is a clear case of judicial manipulation.
Journalists in Turkiye face escalating repression. Akgül’s arrest is part of a larger trend where reporters—especially those reporting on leftist or Kurdish issues—are targeted, detained, and silenced.
The court justified Akgül’s detention by claiming a flight risk—despite her cooperation with authorities. This is a deliberate attempt to punish independent journalism.
We demand the immediate release of Elif Akgül. Journalism is not a crime, and Turkish authorities must end their judicial harassment of the press.
WPF condemns the arrest of journalist Elif Akgül. Criminalizing journalism under the guise of security concerns is an attack on press freedom.
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