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Turkish cartoonist Musa Kart of the Cumhuriyet (L) hugs his wife after being freed from Silivri prison on July 28, 2017 following a Turkish court order to free the seven defendants. The hugely controversial trial in Istanbul of 17 writers, cartoonists and executives from the Cumhuriyet daily newspaper on "terror" charges -- ridiculed as absurd by supporters -- began earlier this week. After five days of intense hearings, the judge ordered that seven suspects, including cartoonist Musa Kart, be released ahead of the next hearing under judicial supervision, meaning they have to report to the authorities regularly. / AFP PHOTO / YASIN AKGUL / The erroneous mention appearing in the metadata of this photo by YASIN AKGUL has been modified in AFP systems in the following manner: [Turkish cartoonist Musa Kart of the Cumhuriyet (L) hugs his wife after being freed from Silivri prison on July 28, 2017 following a Turkish court order to free the seven defendants.] instead of [Supporters hoist posters while they wait for the release of seven people from Silivri prison in Istanbul on July 28, 2017 following a Turkish court order to free the defendants. ]. Please immediately remove the erroneous mention from all your online services and delete it from your servers. If you have been authorized by AFP to distribute it to third parties, please ensure that the same actions are carried out by them. Failure to promptly comply with these instructions will entail liability on your part for any continued or post notification usage. Therefore we thank you very much for all your attention and prompt action. We are sorry for the inconvenience this notification may cause and remain at your disposal for any further information you may require. (Photo credit should read YASIN AKGUL/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

Courts in Turkey being used to strangle media freedom

Responding to the decision of a Turkish first instance appeals court to uphold the conviction of journalists and executives from the…

February 19, 2019

A woman holds a portrait of missing journalist and Riyadh critic Jamal Khashoggi reading "Jamal Khashoggi is missing since October 2" during a demonstration in front of the Saudi Arabian consulate on October 9, 2018 in Istanbul. - Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor, vanished last on October 2 after entering the Saudi Arabian consulate to receive official documents ahead of his marriage to a Turkish woman. A Turkish government source told AFP at the weekend that the police believe the journalist "was killed by a team especially sent to Istanbul and who left the same day". (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

Leading journalists demand justice for Jamal Khashoggi

Leading journalists from around the world pay tribute to Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi Arabian journalist who was murdered by Saudi…

October 29, 2018

Sheet of paper Report

Purged beyond return? No remedy for Turkey’s dismissed public sector workers

More than two years after being arbitrarily dismissed, almost 130,000 Turkish public sector workers are still awaiting justice and facing…

October 24, 2018

A woman holds a portrait of missing journalist and Riyadh critic Jamal Khashoggi reading "Jamal Khashoggi is missing since October 2" during a demonstration in front of the Saudi Arabian consulate on October 9, 2018 in Istanbul. - Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor, vanished last on October 2 after entering the Saudi Arabian consulate to receive official documents ahead of his marriage to a Turkish woman. A Turkish government source told AFP at the weekend that the police believe the journalist "was killed by a team especially sent to Istanbul and who left the same day". (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

Turkey: Seek UN Inquiry on Khashoggi

Turkey should urgently ask UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to establish a United Nations investigation into the possible extrajudicial execution of…

October 18, 2018

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - OCTOBER 05: People hold posters of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi during a protest organized by members of the Turkish-Arabic Media Association at the entrance to the Saudi Arabia Consulate on October 5, 2018 in Istanbul, Turkey. Saudi Consulate officials have said that missing writer and Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi went missing after leaving the consulate, however the statement directly contradicts other sources including Turkish officials who believe that the writer is still inside and being held by Saudi officials. Jamal Khashoggi a Saudi writer critical of the Kingdom and a contributor to the Washington Post was living in self -imposed exile in the U.S. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Press Release

Alleged assassination of Jamal Khashoggi in Saudi Consulate in Istanbul would set abysmal new low

Responding to reports alleging that Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed inside his country’s consulate in Istanbul, Amnesty International’s…

October 7, 2018

AI France staff membres protesting the arrest and detention of AI Turkey director Idil Eser and AI Turkey chairman Taner Kiliç at the Turkish embassy in Paris on 10 July 2017.

Press Release

Turkey: “We will not rest until they are all free”, Amnesty chief vows

Leading human rights champions – including Amnesty International’s newly appointed Secretary General, Kumi Naidoo, and Amnesty Turkey Honorary Chair, Taner Kılıç,…

August 27, 2018

Taner Kilic with his daughters and wife Taner Kılıç, the Chair of Amnesty International Turkey, is charged with “membership of the Fethullah Gülen Terrorist Organization”. This charge is based on the allegation that he downloaded and used the ByLock messaging application, claimed to have been used by the Gülen movement to communicate. However, two independent forensic analyses of Taner’s phone commissioned by Amnesty International found that there is no trace of ByLock having been on his phone.

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Turkey: Released Amnesty Chair hopes justice will prevail for all victims of politically motivated prosecutions

Taner Kılıç, the Honorary Chair of Amnesty International Turkey, who was released yesterday after more than fourteen months behind bars,…

August 16, 2018

Press Release

Amnesty Turkey’s Chair released after more than a year behind bars

Following the release the Honorary Chair of Amnesty International Turkey, Taner Kilic, after more than fourteen months behind bars, Kumi…

August 15, 2018

Taner Kilic with his daughters and wife Taner Kılıç, the Chair of Amnesty International Turkey, is charged with “membership of the Fethullah Gülen Terrorist Organization”. This charge is based on the allegation that he downloaded and used the ByLock messaging application, claimed to have been used by the Gülen movement to communicate. However, two independent forensic analyses of Taner’s phone commissioned by Amnesty International found that there is no trace of ByLock having been on his phone.

Press Release

Amnesty Turkey’s Chair to be released after more than a year behind bars

Following a decision by a court in Istanbul to release the Honorary Chair of Amnesty International Turkey, Taner Kilic after…

August 15, 2018

A general view taken on April 26, 2018, shows Syrians driving a motorbike past an old house in the northern Syrian enclave of Afrin that Ankara-backed forces captured from Kurdish fighters in recent months. - Tens of thousands of people were displaced by the Turkish-led assault on the Afrin region, whose small towns and villages were home to mostly Syrian Kurds. (Photo by Sameer Al-Doumy / AFP) (Photo credit should read SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP/Getty Images)

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Syria: Turkey must stop serious violations by allied groups and its own forces in Afrin

Turkish forces are giving Syrian armed groups free rein to commit serious human rights abuses against civilians in the northern…

August 1, 2018

AI France staff membres protesting the arrest and detention of AI Turkey director Idil Eser, AI Turkey chairman Taner Kiliç and 9 orhers Human rights defenders at the Turkish embassy in Paris on 10 July 2017.

Press Release

Turkey: Lifting of state of emergency must pave road back to justice

Responding to the fact that Turkey’s the state of emergency will not be renewed when it expires at the end…

July 18, 2018

Taibeh Abbasi, 18, (right) with her best friend Ingjerd Jepsen Vegge. Taibeh iis in danger of being deported from Norway to Afghanistan, where she has never lived. Students at her high school organised a huge demo in Trondheim on 3 October 2017 to show solidarity with Taibeh and ask the government to stop the deportation.

Press Release

Afghanistan: Record high civilian casualties make returns unjustifiable

The international community cannot abandon the Afghan people who have fled conflict and violence at a time when civilian casualties…

July 16, 2018