Turkish court rules for release from jail of pro-Kurdish daily’s distributor
A Turkish court has ruled for the release from prison of Barış Polat, a media worker for the pro-Kurdish Özgürlükçü Demokrasi newspaper, which was...
Black humour: Erdoğan says no group’s freedom has deteriorated in 16 years of AKP...
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Sunday that the freedom of no individual or an ethnic or religious group had deteriorated in Turkey...
Anchor admits Fox TV avoided broadcasting Turkish opposition deputy’s speech
Turkey’s Fox TV anchor Fatih Portakal on Monday admitted that they had avoided broadcasting an opposition deputy’s speech in parliament due to fear of...
Academic gets suspended sentence for signing peace petition
Istanbul Bilgi University academic and columnist for the Evrensel daily Esra Arsan on Wednesday was handed down a suspended one year, three-month sentence on...
European rights court orders Turkey to compensate owner of shut-down Kurdish daily
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) on Tuesday ordered Turkey to compensate the owner of a Kurdish newspaper that was shut down in...
SCF’s submission for the United Nations Universal Periodic Review of Turkey
TURKEY
Stakeholder Report for the United Nations Universal Periodic Review
Submitted by the Stockholm Center for Freedom
for the 35rd Session of the Working Group
on the Universal...
Police briefly detain 4 journalists working for Russian Sputnik’s Turkish service
Turkish police briefly detained four journalists from the Turkish operation of Russia’s Sputnik news agency including its editor-in-chief, according to Sputnik.
Editor-in-chief Mahir Boztepe, who...
Turkish journalist suffering from cancer released from prison
Journalist Mevlüt Öztaş, who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer while in jail and is currently at stage four of the disease, has been released...
Wife of jailed journalist with multiple health problems: We haven’t heard from him in...
The wife of imprisoned journalist Çetin Çiftçi, who suffers from multiple health problems, said she has not heard from her husband for 10 days...
Turkish columnist sentenced to prison for criticizing Defense Minister Akar
Prominent Turkish columnist Yılmaz Özdil was sentenced to five months’ imprisonment on Tuesday for criticizing then-Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar on a...
Latest Reports
Torture, Ill-treatment and Prison Conditions in Turkey: 2025 in Review
Turkey's record on torture and ill-treatment continued to deteriorate in 2025, despite its commitments under international human rights conventions.
Throughout the year human rights organizations...
Turkey’s Transnational Repression: 2025 in Review
Turkey's campaign of transnational repression against critics abroad continued throughout 2025. Since a coup attempt in July 2016, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s long arm...
Turkey’s Crackdown on the Gülen Movement: 2025 in Review
During the year Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan continued to relentlessly pursue anyone with alleged links with the faith-based Gülen movement, which he described...
Women’s rights in Turkey: 2025 in Review
The state of women’s rights in Turkey showed no meaningful improvement in 2025, as longstanding problems persisted and new challenges emerged. Femicides, institutional failures...
Weaponized Diplomacy: How Erdoğan Uses Turkish Missions for Transnational Repression
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This report reveals how the Turkish government has transformed its embassies and consulates into instruments of repression over the past decade. Once seen...
The Forgotten Victims: Children of Turkey’s Post-Coup Purge
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This report examines how children from families targeted in Turkey’s unprecedented post-coup purge have endured the devastating consequences of persecution, social exclusion and...
Human Rights in Turkey: 2024 in Review
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This report highlights the most important developments in the area of human rights in Turkey during the year 2024.
Throughout the year Turkey continued...
Dehumanizing a Legacy: How Fethullah Gülen’s Death Triggered a Campaign of Hate Speech in...
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This report examines the surge of hate speech following the death of Fethullah Gülen, a US-based cleric whose followers have been systematically persecuted...