ISTANBUL: A Turkish court on Friday acquitted 87 people accused of joining protests over the jailing of Istanbul’s popular mayor in March, court documents obtained by AFP showed.
The defendants, mostly young people and students, were arrested in late March during a wave of protests in support of Istanbul’s opposition mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
Imamoglu is a key rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“Because it was not proven that the defendants committed the alleged act, it was decided that each of the defendants be acquitted of the charge against them,” the judge said during the hearing at Istanbul’s main Caglayan court house.
The defendants’ families welcomed the ruling.
“Once again, justice and youth have triumphed,” the Velider association of parents and students said on X.
Turkish authorities cracked down on the protests, arresting nearly 2,000 people including students and journalists.
On Thursday, the court in Istanbul acquitted four journalists, including AFP photographer Yasin Akgul, over their role in the mass protests.
Turkiye court acquits dozens over Istanbul protests
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Turkiye court acquits dozens over Istanbul protests
- A Turkish court on Friday acquitted 87 people accused of joining protests over the jailing of Istanbul’s popular mayor in March, court documents obtained by AFP showed
Two Tunisia columnists handed over three years in prison
- Mourad Zeghidi and Borhen Bsaies have already been in detention for almost two years
- They were due to be released in January 2025 but have remained in custody on charges of money laundering
TUNIS: Two prominent Tunisian columnists were sentenced on Thursday to three and a half years in prison each for money laundering and tax evasion, according to a relative and local media.
The two men, Mourad Zeghidi and Borhen Bsaies, have already been in detention for almost two years for statements considered critical of President Kais Saied’s government, made on radio, television programs and social media.
They were due to be released in January 2025 but have remained in custody on charges of money laundering and tax evasion.
“Three and a half years for Mourad and Borhen,” Zeghidi’s sister, Meriem Zeghidi Adda, wrote on Facebook on Thursday.
Since Saied’s power grab, which granted him sweeping powers on July 25, 2021, local and international NGOs have denounced a regression of rights and freedoms in Tunisia.
Dozens of opposition figures and civil society activists are being prosecuted under a presidential decree officially aimed at combatting “fake news” but subject to a very broad interpretation denounced by human rights defenders.
Others, including opposition leaders, have been sentenced to heavy prison terms in a mega-trial of “conspiracy against state security.”
In 2025, Tunisia fell 11 places in media watchdog Reporters Without Borders’ (RSF) World Press Freedom Index, dropping from 118th to 129th out of 180 countries.
