Furkan Karabay was freed pending his appeal against his four-year sentence for “insulting the president” and other offences connected to his journalistic work.
Turkish investigative journalist Furkan Karabay walked free from prison on Tuesday after spending six-and-a half-months behind bars awaiting his sentence.
A court in Istanbul sentenced him to four years and three months in prison for “insulting the president” and “targeting individuals involved in the fight against terrorism” within articles, videos and social media posts. But he was released the same day pending his appeal – a process that could take years.
In the courtroom, Karabay had an argument with the judges after he tore up the indictment and threw it away.
The judge accused Karabay of “not putting up a defence”, but his lawyers said that judges cannot decide on “how Karabay will put up his defence”.
Following the tension in the court room, state prosecutors demanded between six and 15 years in prison. But the judges sentenced him to just over four years and released him from prison ahead of his appeal.
Karabay’s reporting and social media posts concerned his investigation into the case of Ahmet Ozer, the mayor of Istanbul’s Esenyurt District, who was in jail at the time and accused by the authorities of having ties to terror groups. Ozer has since been released from prison, but remains under investigation and was dismissed from his role as mayor.
Turkish and international rights groups and media organisations have been demanding the release of Karabay.
Last week an Istanbul court jailed veteran journalist Fatih Altayli for four years and two months for “threatening the president” over remarks he made on his YouTube channel. Unlike Karabay, Altayli was not released after sentencing.
The latest Press Freedom Index issued by media watchdog Reporters Without Borders ranked Turkey 159th out of 180 countries in 2025.
Source: BalkanInsight
