Turkish comedian Tuba Ulu was detained after making a joke about Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent during a stand-up performance, Turkish Minute reported.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation after a video of the performance circulated on social media. Ulu is accused of “insulting historical, national and moral values,” according to a statement from the prosecutor’s office on Thursday.
Prosecutors said the remarks, which included explicit language about the 16th-century Ottoman ruler, were publicly disseminated online, prompting the detention order carried out by police.
The remarks included a joke referencing the Ottoman ruler’s relationship with his wife, Hürrem Sultan.
The case has sparked criticism from free speech advocates and fellow performers.
The Comedian Women’s Initiative, a collective supporting female comedians, called for Ulu’s release, saying comedians should not face legal action over their stage performances.
“Humor is inherently critical, free and a reflection of society,” the group said in a statement on social media. “Subjecting a comedian’s on-stage expressions to judicial proceedings is a blow not only to freedom of expression but also to art and the joy of life.”
The group also said it opposed what it described as efforts to silence a female comedian and pledged to follow the legal process.
Suleiman the Magnificent, who ruled the Ottoman Empire from 1520 to 1566, is widely regarded as one of its most powerful rulers. His relationship with Hürrem Sultan, a former slave who became his legal wife, marked a break from Ottoman tradition and has been the subject of historical studies and popular culture.
International monitors continue to rank Turkey poorly on freedom of expression and media freedom. Freedom House classifies the country as ‘Not Free,’ while Reporters Without Borders ranked it 159th out of 180 countries in its “2025 World Press Freedom Index.”
