Merdan Yanardağ

Journalist Yanardağ faced two trials in 2023. He was tried for “insulting the president” starting in March, based on a 2022 article, and was acquitted in November. He was also detained in June after criticizing Abdullah Öcalan’s treatment in prison and tried for “terrorist propaganda,” but was acquitted and released in October. In February 2025, he was acquitted of charges for “spreading misleading information.” In March 2025, he was sentenced to 1 year and 3 months for “publicly insulting the military” in a 2024 YouTube video. He currently remains free. In September 2025, he was briefly detained for "insulting the president," but several days later was acquitted on these charges. He was then jailed pending trial in October while new charges were prepared against him.