ANKARA: The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ordered Turkey on Tuesday to compensate the owner of a Kurdish newspaper that was shut down in 2016, after finding that criminal proceedings had been “systematically opened” against it.
The closure of daily Ozgur Gundem, for what the Turkish court that ordered it said was spreading propaganda in favor of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), came shortly after the abortive coup in Turkey in July 2016.
The paper, which focused on the conflict between Kurdish militants and Turkish security forces in the country’s mainly Kurdish southeast, has faced dozens of investigations, fines and the arrest of its correspondents since 2014.
In its ruling published on Tuesday, the ECHR said criminal proceedings against the paper had been “systematically opened, regardless of the actual content of the articles.”
The ECHR said the lawsuits had led the paper’s owner Ali Gurbuz to self-censor for fear of conviction and ordered the Turkish government to pay him 3,500 euros ($3,950).
Turkey has the right to appeal the ruling.
The ECHR said the criminal proceedings could be seen as the authorities trying to suppress publication of statements by terrorist organizations “even though they could be regarded as contributing to a public debate.” Some articles cited contained “insignificant messages,” such as Christmas wishes, and did not constitute calls for violence or hate speech, it said.
The PKK is deemed a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and European Union. More than 40,000 people have been killed during its three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state.
Since the failed coup attempt, Turkey has jailed more than 77,000 people pending trial, while 150,000 civil servants and military personnel have been suspended or sacked. Some 150 media outlets have been shut down and 160 journalists jailed.
Widespread arrests are still routine.
Rights groups and Turkey’s Western allies have voiced concern over the scale of the crackdown, saying President Tayyip Erdogan has used the coup as a pretext to quash dissent.
ECHR orders Turkey to compensate owner of closed Kurdish newspaper
ECHR orders Turkey to compensate owner of closed Kurdish newspaper
- The paper focused on the conflict between Kurdish militants and Turkish security forces in the country’s mainly Kurdish southeast
- The ECHR said the lawsuits had led the paper’s owner Ali Gurbuz to self-censor for fear of conviction and ordered the Turkish government to pay him $3,950
Book by jailed Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti set for November release
- Prison letters, photographs and other documents to feature in the book
DUBAI: A new book by jailed Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti is set for publication in November, with Penguin confirmed as the publisher, The Guardian reported.
Titled “Unbroken: In Pursuit of Freedom for Palestine,” the book brings together a selection of Barghouti’s writings, including prison letters, interviews, public statements, conversations with public figures, and other documents and photographs.
It also features excerpts from his book “1,000 Days in Solitary Confinement,” which has so far only been published in Arabic.
Fadwa Barghouti, who wrote the introduction to the book, said she hoped it would allow the world to hear her husband “in his own voice, not through the noise surrounding him.”
She said in a statement: “This book finally makes that possible — and I hope it helps people understand who Marwan Barghouti truly is, and how he embodies the Palestinian struggle for freedom and dignity.”
Barghouti, who has spent over two decades in Israeli prison, is a member of the Fatah party. He has long advocated a two-state solution and is widely regarded as a powerful and unifying voice for Palestinians, with many supporters describing him as “Palestine’s Mandela.”
His detention has prompted repeated international advocacy efforts over the years.
In December 2025, an open letter calling for his release was signed by hundreds of celebrities, including Margaret Atwood, Philip Pullman, Zadie Smith and Annie Ernaux; actors Sir Ian McKellen, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tilda Swinton, Josh O’Connor, Mark Ruffalo and Stephen Fry; and musicians Sting, Paul Simon, Brian Eno and Annie Lennox.
In November 2025, his family and several UK-based human rights advocates ran a campaign that included demonstrations and public art installations in Palestine and London.
Barghouti has been jailed by Israel since 2004, having been handed five life sentences plus 40 years for his role during the second Palestinian uprising. He has spent significant time in solitary confinement, has been denied visits by his family for three years, and has been denied access to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
His name was on a list of prisoners to be exchanged for Israeli captives in October 2025, but Israel declined to release him.
