An İstanbul court has handed down a 26-month suspended sentence to popular YouTuber and filmmaker İlker Canikligil over comments he made during a livestream earlier this year, Turkish Minute reported on Tuesday.
Canikligil, founder of FLU TV on YouTube, was prosecuted over comments he made in a March broadcast in which he criticized what he described as Turkey’s “lower class” voter base and referenced “Execute Order 66,” a mass-killing command from the “Star Wars” series. His remarks sparked a swift public backlash.
In the livestream Canikligil said: “I get in a taxi and a lower-class guy smiles at me and says ‘Reis.’ … He’s actually saying: ‘You studied and achieved things, but my guy will rule over you.’ … And what did he get you? You’re still a taxi driver. … The only thing I want to say is: Execute Order 66.”
The term “Reis,” used for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, refers to an informal but widely used form of address meaning “the chief” or “the captain” and is associated with his political career.
Canikligil later posted on X, urging followers not to engage with critics and arguing that “political Islam should be ignored and gradually eliminated.”
Following the controversy, the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation into him for “public incitement to commit a crime” and “inciting hatred and enmity among the people.”
Canikligil was detained and arrested on March 26, spending six weeks in pretrial detention before being released under judicial supervision on May 7.
In his defense Canikligil told the court that his remarks were intended purely as irony and humor, saying he had “no other motive.” He denied the accusation that he had called for violence.
“These sentences were entirely meant as irony and satire; I had no other intention. It was never a call for mass killing,” he said. “If anything, the reports about me are what constitute incitement to hatred. I am both saddened and angered that my words were distorted in this way. I deny the charges and request my release and acquittal.”
He announced Tuesday’s verdict on X, writing: “I received a 26-month sentence. HAGB was applied. May the homeland live long.”
HAGB refers to suspension of his sentence, meaning the conviction will not appear on his record if he does not commit a similar offense during the probation period.
Speaking to the Diken news website, Canikligil said the court ruling consisted of two separate sentences, one for 18 months and another for eight months, based on multiple social media posts included in the indictment.
FLU TV halts political content
FLU TV, the YouTube-based independent media channel founded by Canikligil in 2019, gained prominence with its long-form interviews, documentaries and cultural commentary that appealed to a young, politically engaged audience.
Known for hosting journalists, academics and public figures in open discussions, the channel, which has more than 960,000 subscribers, positioned itself as an alternative to Turkey’s tightly controlled mainstream media.
After Canikligil’s arrest, FLU TV announced it would end all political programming, citing increasing legal pressure and the shrinking space for critical expression.
Two days after his release, Canikligil appeared on FLU TV and explained the decision to drop political content.
“Our tail is caught. You play chess, but the other side keeps rewriting the rules,” he said. “Definitions of crimes are so vague. … Some expect us to resist, but there’s no point in sitting down to a game you can’t win.”
Canikligil’s prosecution comes amid growing pressure on critical voices in Turkey, where journalists, academics and online commentators face increasing legal scrutiny.
Rights groups accuse the Turkish government of frequently using incitement, insult and defamation laws to silence dissent.
The US-based democracy watchdog Freedom House’s 2025 Freedom on the Net report placed Turkey among the five countries with the steepest long-term declines in internet freedom, citing broad censorship practices and intensified digital controls over the past 15 years. The organization gave Turkey a score of 31 out of 100, putting it in the bottom tier of the 72 countries assessed.
