Nevşin Mengü, a well-known Turkish freelance journalist known for her YouTube content including the daily series Bugün Ne Oldu? (What Happened Today?), was detained over the weekend. Her detention followed an interview released on her channel December 13th with Salih Müslim,.co-leader of the Syrian pro-Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD).
Salih Müslim is recognized as a terrorist by Turkey due to his connections to the People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia group. The statement regarding Mengü’s detention released by the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor read:
“Nevşin Mengü published an interview with Salih Müslim, the leader of the YPG/PYD terrorist organization and wanted red-list criminal,.on her social media account on.13.12.2024. This interview included statements praising the terrorist organization and its actions. The suspect was taken into custody this morning. Following the receipt of her defense, she was referred to the. Criminal Court of Peace on Duty,.where a ‘ban on international travel’ was implemented.”
On Friday afternoon prior to her arrest,.Mengü had posted a message on Twitter announcing that she had removed the interview following warnings from lawyers.
Mengü had recently been visiting Syria following the fall of the Assad regime last week,.where she filmed a piece about her trip from Idlib to Aleppo.
What is PYD?
The PYD was originally founded as the Syrian arm of the Kurdish Workers Party.(PKK), a militia group classified as a terrorist group by Turkey,.the United States, the European Union, and others.
Freedom House’s 2024 report classifies Turkey as ‘not free’ due to restrictions on social media. platforms, imprisonment of opposition politicians and journalists, and failure to uphold constitutional court rulings.
The 2024 Freedom House report writes: .“According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Turkey was the world’s fourth most prolific jailer of journalists in 2022, with 40 journalists in prison. Turkish authorities detained and arrested scores of journalists in 2023.”
Written/translated for Medyascope by Leo Kendrick
Medyascope'un günlük e-bülteni
Andaç'a abone olun
Editörlerimizin derlediği öngörüler, analizler, Türkiye’yi ve dünyayı şekillendiren haberler, Medyascope’un e-bülteni Andaç‘la her gün mail kutunuzda.
