Leading Turkish press and writers associations on Wednesday warned against the use of threatening language and public incitement targeting the Turkish satirical magazine LeMan, as the government intensified its response to a controversial cartoon, Turkish Minute reported.
The magazine came under fire in Turkey earlier this week due to its June 26 edition, which allegedly featured a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad, a claim the magazine denies.
The drawing showed two elderly figures, one labeled “Muhammad” and the other “Moses,” shaking hands mid-air above a war zone. According to LeMan, the cartoon was intended as a symbolic anti-war message, not as a depiction of the Prophet.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and senior members of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) government have condemned the cartoon with strong language and public denunciations, accusing the magazine of blasphemy.
In a joint statement the Turkish Journalists’ Association (TGC), the Turkish Publishers Association, the Journalists’ Union of Turkey (TGS), the Turkish Writers’ Union (TYS) and PEN Turkey expressed deep concern over what they described as a discourse that targets individuals, incites hostility and encourages violence.
The statement said freedom of the press and freedom of expression are fundamental pillars of pluralist democracy. It warned that portraying ideas, criticism and especially satire as criminal offenses and fostering an environment conducive to physical violence deepens the climate of repression for all and causes irreparable harm to the foundations of shared social life.
“We call on all parties to reject this threatening language that seeks to suppress ideas through violence and to resolve disputes through peaceful dialogue,” the statement added.
In a statement posted on X, Erdoğan on Tuesday called the cartoon a “despicable provocation” and “open incitement” disguised as humor. The president said the cartoon amounted to hate speech, vowing legal consequences.
“Those who act with such insolence will answer for it in court. We will closely follow this process,” he said.
Interior Minister Yerlikaya also called the drawing “vile” and those responsible “shameless,” repeatedly declaring they “will pay before the law.” In a series of posts on X, he announced and praised the detentions of LeMan’s cartoonist, graphic designer, managing editor and others — often referring to them only by their initials, posting detention footage and describing the publication as “insulting to our Prophet.”
Critics said these statements amounted to incitement and directly contributed to a violent mob attack outside LeMan’s office in İstanbul on Monday, when scores of angry Turks gathered on İstiklal Avenue, shouting “Allahu Akbar” and “Long live Sharia,” smashing windows and attacking a nearby bar known to be frequented by the magazine’s staff.
Following their detention over the controversial cartoon earlier this week, four LeMan staff members — cartoonist Doğan Pehlivan, graphic designer Cebrail Okçu, managing director Zafer Aknar and company manager Ali Yavuz — were jailed pending trial on charges of “publicly insulting religious values” on Wednesday.
Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç backed the legal proceedings, citing Article 216/3 of the Turkish Penal Code, which criminalizes “openly insulting religious values.”
Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun echoed this, calling the cartoon an “immoral provocation” and warning that Turkey “will not allow such attacks on our values.”
Civil society leaders and opposition figures maintain that it is the government’s inflammatory rhetoric, not the cartoon itself, that has jeopardized public safety.
