01:21Turkey: Journalist Can Dundar shot at outside Istanbul courthouse
Prominent Turkish journalist Can Dundar was shot at twice outside an Istanbul courthouse, Friday, as he awaited a court verdict in his trial on charges of revealing state secrets.
The editor-in-chief of the Turkish opposition newspaper Cumhuriyet was taking a break from the closed-court proceedings at Caglayan Justice Palace when he was approached by a man bearing a handgun. The assailant reportedly shouted “Traitor” before opening fire at the journalist.
One man attempted to shield Dundar, as his wife, Dilek, and a member of parliament for the Republican People's Party (CHP), Muharrem Erkek, apprehended the shooter. Plain-clothes police quickly arrived on the scene, forcing the assailant to drop his gun and lie face down on the floor before he was detained.
Dundar was not injured during the shooting but another journalist was reportedly wounded. Turkish officials are yet to reveal information on the assailant’s background and motives.
The incident occurred ahead of a verdict on the Cumhuriyet editor’s trial, where he stands accused of obtaining and publishing state secrets. Dundar and his colleague Erdem Gul, the newspaper’s Ankara bureau chief, were arrested in November 2015 after printing images allegedly showing trucks operated by the Turkish intelligence services transferring weapons over the Syrian border in 2014.
Following their arrest, Dundar and Gul were held in pre-trial detention at Silivri high security state prison on the outskirts of Istanbul. Both men spent nearly half of their 92 days in prison in solitary confinement. In February 2016, the Turkish Constitutional Court ordered their release after ruling that their right to free speech had been violated.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdgoan has personally entered into the debate on the case, petitioning the court as a complainant, and stating in a public address that Dundar would “pay a heavy price” for tarnishing Turkey’s international reputation. The Cumhuriyet journalists have charged Erdogan with attacking freedom of speech and view the trial as a wider government crackdown on Turkey’s free press.
The final judgement on Dundar’s case will be announced later today.
01:21Prominent Turkish journalist Can Dundar was shot at twice outside an Istanbul courthouse, Friday, as he awaited a court verdict in his trial on charges of revealing state secrets.
The editor-in-chief of the Turkish opposition newspaper Cumhuriyet was taking a break from the closed-court proceedings at Caglayan Justice Palace when he was approached by a man bearing a handgun. The assailant reportedly shouted “Traitor” before opening fire at the journalist.
One man attempted to shield Dundar, as his wife, Dilek, and a member of parliament for the Republican People's Party (CHP), Muharrem Erkek, apprehended the shooter. Plain-clothes police quickly arrived on the scene, forcing the assailant to drop his gun and lie face down on the floor before he was detained.
Dundar was not injured during the shooting but another journalist was reportedly wounded. Turkish officials are yet to reveal information on the assailant’s background and motives.
The incident occurred ahead of a verdict on the Cumhuriyet editor’s trial, where he stands accused of obtaining and publishing state secrets. Dundar and his colleague Erdem Gul, the newspaper’s Ankara bureau chief, were arrested in November 2015 after printing images allegedly showing trucks operated by the Turkish intelligence services transferring weapons over the Syrian border in 2014.
Following their arrest, Dundar and Gul were held in pre-trial detention at Silivri high security state prison on the outskirts of Istanbul. Both men spent nearly half of their 92 days in prison in solitary confinement. In February 2016, the Turkish Constitutional Court ordered their release after ruling that their right to free speech had been violated.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdgoan has personally entered into the debate on the case, petitioning the court as a complainant, and stating in a public address that Dundar would “pay a heavy price” for tarnishing Turkey’s international reputation. The Cumhuriyet journalists have charged Erdogan with attacking freedom of speech and view the trial as a wider government crackdown on Turkey’s free press.
The final judgement on Dundar’s case will be announced later today.