Two Turkish journalists arrested, says RSF

Two Turkish investigative journalists were arrested Thursday and their homes searched, adding to the ranks of reporters imprisoned in connection with protests following the arrest of Istanbul's mayor, announced the Turkish branch of Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

"Investigative journalists Timur Soykan and Murat Agirel, who present programs on YouTube after leaving Halk TV, have been arrested," the official Bluesky account of RSF's Turkish branch said, lamenting a "new black day for the freedom to inform." "According to the Birgün newspaper, police teams searched the homes of the two journalists," who are critical of the government, RSF noted.

Timur Soykan, one of the country's most well-known investigative journalists, and Murat Agirel recently revealed on a YouTube program what they considered irregularities in investigations involving Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and six other mayors from the CHP (opposition, social-democratic party), RSF indicated.

Ekrem Imamoglu, the main rival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was arrested on March 19 and placed in pretrial detention four days later for "corruption," an accusation he denies. His arrest triggered an unprecedented wave of protests in Turkey since the major Gezi movement, which started from Taksim Square in Istanbul in 2013.

According to the Turkish Journalists' Union (TGS), the two journalists "were taken into custody during a dawn operation, as they had announced they would go to the prosecutor's office to testify" on the ongoing investigations.

In a message posted on X, Cafer Mahiroglu, the CEO of Halk TV where the two journalists worked until last March, described this arrest as "unacceptable" during "a home raid on the day they were to testify." "The Halk TV family supports both of them," he added.

In total, at least 13 Turkish journalists have been arrested since the start of the protests. Seven of them have been indicted, including an AFP photographer, who was released from detention. They will appear Friday, April 18, before the Istanbul 1st Criminal Court of Instance. A Swedish journalist has also been detained in Istanbul, accused of "terrorism" and "insulting President" Recep Tayyip Erdogan.