Seventeen international press organizations and rights groups have called for Turkey to immediately release journalist Furkan Karabay, who faces a prison sentence of six to 15 years on charges of “insulting the president,” and “repeatedly targeting public officials involved in counterterrorism efforts.”
In a joint statement issued on Monday under the coordination of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR), the organizations also condemned Karabay’s prolonged pretrial detention, describing it as part of a broader crackdown on press freedom in Turkey. They noted that his case mirrored the persecution of other journalists who had been held for extended periods of pretrial detention without indictment.
Citing the cases of journalists Fatih Altaylı, Yıldız Tar, Ercüment Akdeniz and Elif Akgül, the groups stated that such cases illustrate how pretrial imprisonment is being misused to punish and silence critical voices.
The organizations said that “Karabay’s imprisonment and denial of due process for more than three months represent a disproportionate and punitive response to his journalism,” warning that equating news coverage with serious offenses such as “targeting officials” is a dangerous distortion.
The press freedom organizations and rights groups that signed the joint statement were the International Press Institute (IPI), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Danish PEN, the Dicle Fırat Journalists Association, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), IFEX, the International Fédération of Journalists (IFJ), the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA), the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, PEN America, PEN International, PEN Norway, PEN Sweden, the P24 Platform for Independent Journalism, Reporters sans frontières (RSF) and the South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO).
They also urged the Turkish authorities to release 17 journalists currently in jail.
Turkish authorities frequently use broad counterterrorism laws and insult charges to prosecute members of the press.
Turkey was ranked 159th out of 180 countries in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in May.
