Turkey, the Supreme Court frees journalists Ahmet Altan and Nazli Ilicak

Ahmet Altan

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April 14, 2021 The Turkish Supreme Court overturned the sentences handed down in the trial of the Turkish journalist and intellectual, Ahmet Altan, and of the journalist Nazli Ilcak, in prison since 2016, decreeing their release.

Two days ago, the

based in Strasbourg accepted the request of Altan's lawyer, Figen Calikusu, who had filed an appeal at the end of 2019. The Court had determined the violation of the principles of 'due process' and of Altan's 'freedom of expression' and sentenced Ankara to pay compensation of 16,000 euros to the journalist, but rejected the thesis of a political imprisonment.

Altan and Ilcak, in prison for 4 years and 7 months, were sentenced to 10 years and 8 years and 9 months in prison respectively.

The sentences had been asked by the prosecutor, who had asked for an end to the trial for Ahmet Altan's brother, the economist and academic Mehmet, already free since June 2018.

The requests were formulated in a second trial which took place in 2019, after the conviction to '

issued against 3 in March 2018 had been overturned by the supreme court of Turkey's appeal in July.

The three ended up in the dock on charges of being affiliated with the Fetullah Gulen coup network, believed to be the mastermind of the

and of having used a television broadcast to anticipate the coup.