Erdem Gül

An Istanbul court rejected on Dec. 11 an appeal for the release of prominent journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül, who jailed pending trial on charges of "aiding terrorist organizations."      

Three journalists from daily Birgün were sentenced to 11 months in prison on Dec. 10 for allegedly insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an, with the court later suspending the sentences.

"There is an increasing divergence rather than convergence between European and Turkish values - at least, those imposed on Turkey by its current government," Robert Ellis wrote recently in the Jerusalem Post.

Prominent journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül have not been imprisoned because of their press activities but for "aiding terrorist organizations," Ankara has said in a retort to the Council of Europe.

Daily Cumhuriyet Editor-in-Chief Can Dündar, who was arrested along with his Ankara bureau chief Erdem Gül on Nov. 26 over a report on weapons-filled Turkish intelligence trucks bound for Syria, has penned a note in appreciation of a message of support from Ukraine-based women movement FEMEN.

Good news! New chapters may soon open in Turkey's looming membership in the European Union. The news came as spy/terrorist-journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül finished their 11th day in their prison cells. But why not speed up the membership process?

Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal K?l?çdaro?lu has called on Prime Minister Ahmet Davuto?lu to support a recent bill proposed by his party to ensure trials without arrest for journalists facing press-related charges. 

Turkey's Justice Ministry has denied media reports claiming that Cumhuriyet editor-in-chief Can Dündar and Ankara bureau chief Erdem Gül are being held in "isolation" during their ongoing pre-trial detention.

Turkish artist Bedri Baykam held a press conference on Dec. 7 to protest Saudi Arabia's recent decision to sentence Palestinian poet Ashraf Fayadh to death.

Baykam, the president of the International Art Association (IAA), held the conference at Piramid Sanat in Istanbul's Taksim neighborhood to raise awareness about the impending execution.

Cumhuriyet editor-in-chief Can Dündar and Ankara bureau chief Erdem Gül, who were arrested on Nov. 26 for their report on weapons-filled Turkish intelligence trucks bound for Syria in early 2014, have applied to the Constitutional Court for release.