For the time being, she remains in detention until the next hearing of her trial next week.

The president of the Union of Doctors of Turkey, Sebnem Korur Fincanci appeared this Friday before a court in Istanbul.

She is on trial for “terrorist propaganda”.

Detained since October 26 in a prison in Ankara, this female doctor had called for an investigation into accusations of the use of chemical weapons by the Turkish army against the fighters of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in Iraq, relayed by media and members of the opposition.

PKK claims to have suffered chemical weapons attacks

Ankara, which considers the PKK as a terrorist in the same way as the EU, immediately denounced a campaign of “disinformation”.

The arrest of this forensic medicine expert sparked protests in Istanbul where dozens of people were arrested.

"As a human rights defender, I have a responsibility to uphold freedom of expression and the public's right to information," the 63-year-old told the hearing on Friday.

The PKK claimed that 17 of its fighters had died in chemical weapons attacks in the mountains of northern Iraq.

The continued detention of Sebnem Korur Fincanci is “an odious attack on human rights which demands immediate reparation”, reacted the NGO Physicians for Human Rights.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have for their part launched a joint appeal with five other organizations for the release of the opponent pending her trial.

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