Turkiye: Esra Solin Dal and Colleagues Indicted on Bogus Terrorism Charges
Court accepts indictment and orders release of the three journalists from Kurdish media outlets pending trial
Location: Turkiye, Istanbul
Date: May 22, 2024
Women Press Freedom firmly condemns the baseless charges against Esra Solin Dal and her two journalist colleagues, who are being accused of "membership in a terrorist organization" due to their alleged ties to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). After being behind bars for almost a month, the journalists were released on May 22, 2024, pending trial. The indictment, hastily prepared by the Istanbul prosecutor in just 12 days, presents the journalists’ reporting and social media activity as supposed evidence of their guilt. The rapidity of the indictment and the flimsy evidence highlight the systematic targeting of the Kurdish press. Journalism is not terrorism. We urge the courts to acquit the journalists and call on Turkish authorities to cease persecuting journalists from Kurdish media outlets.
On May 21, 2024, Mezopotamya news agency reporters Esra Solin Dal, Mehmet Aslan, and journalist Erdoğan Alayumat were indicted on terrorism offenses at the Istanbul 25th High Criminal Court.
After spending 24 days behind bars, the three journalists were released pending trial.
The indictment against them, issued by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office only 12 days after their arrest and accepted by the court on May 8, accuses them of "membership in a terrorist organization." It alleges the journalists have links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a designated terrorist group.
The 17-page indictment relies heavily on the journalists' news reports, citing 126 articles as evidence for their alleged terrorist connections. Throughout the document, the prosecutor frequently uses the term "so-called news” in reference to the journalists’ reporting.
The indictment mentions specific articles and interviews, such as Esra Solin Dal’s interview with documentary filmmaker Ertuğrul Mavioğlu, interviews she had with women lawmakers from the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), and her news reports about the isolation imposed on Abdullah Öcalan, the 74-year-old imprisoned leader of the PKK.
The journalists' social media posts were also cited. Six posts by Dal on her X account were included as evidence.
The persecution of the reporters began when Esra Solin Dal and nine other journalists affiliated with Kurdish media outlets were detained in coordinated law enforcement raids across Istanbul, Ankara, and Urfa on April 23, 2024. Charged three days later with "membership in a terrorist organization," the three journalists, including Dal, were detained while the remaining six were subjected to judicial restrictions but released.
Dal was held in solitary confinement at Bakırköy Women's Closed Prison in İstanbul for at least 11 days. Despite her repeated requests, authorities refuse to move her to a communal cell. Reports state she was subjected to an unjust strip search by police officers when she was arrested.
The case against Esra Solin Dal and her colleagues is part of a broader pattern of legal harassment and persecution faced by Kurdish journalists in Turkiye. For years, Kurdish journalists have endured harassment, arbitrary arrests, and imprisonment under the guise of anti-terror operations. Turkish authorities often exploit these laws to stifle dissent and muzzle voices advocating for Kurdish rights or reporting on issues impacting the Kurdish community. The indictment of these journalists underscores the ongoing challenges to media freedom in the country, particularly since the failed coup attempt in 2016.
Women Press Freedom condemns the bogus terror charges brought against Esra Solin Dal, Mehmet Aslan, and Erdoğan Alayumat. The allegations, rooted in their journalistic work and social media activity, are yet another example of the misuse of anti-terror legislation to quash dissent and obstruct the reporting of Kurdish media. Urgent pressure must be exerted on Turkish authorities to uphold press freedom and cease the targeting of journalists based on their ethnicity or coverage of sensitive topics. We urge the criminal court to clear the journalists of all charges, sending an important message that journalism cannot and should not be equated with terrorism.
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