Latest news with #YasinAkgul
RNZ News
23-04-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Powerful earthquake shakes Istanbul, dozens hurt jumping from buildings
A 6.2 magnitude earthquake shook Istanbul on 23 April 2025 sending people rushing on to the streets. Many gathered in parks as aftershocks continued to be felt. Photo: AFP / Yasin Akgul More than 150 people were injured when they jumped from buildings in Istanbul as one of the strongest quakes in years hit the city. Many people gathered in parks and others sat on doorsteps, or stood outside their homes in the centre of Istanbul as aftershocks from the magnitude 6.2 quake on the European side of the city continued to be felt. "It started with a big tremor all of a sudden and we felt it very strongly," said Istanbul resident Neslisah Aygoren, sitting in a park. "I ran straight to my dog in fear, hugged it and we waited for it to end, lying on the ground. After that, we took our belongings and went straight to the street." A total of 151 people were hurt and received hospital treatment after leaping from buildings in panic during the tremor but none were in a critical condition, the Istanbul governor's office said. It said one abandoned building collapsed in central Istanbul, but nobody was hurt there, while there was no damage to energy or water infrastructure in the city of 16 million on the European and Asian shores of the Bosphorus Strait. Some shops closed. Two years ago Turkey suffered the deadliest and most destructive earthquake in its modern history . That 7.8-magnitude quake in February 2023 killed more than 55,000 people and injured more than 107,000 in southern Turkey and northern Syria. Hundreds of thousands of people remain displaced, with many still living in temporary housing as a result of that quake. The latest tremor also revived memories of a 1999 earthquake near Istanbul that killed 17,000. The epicentre of Wednesday's quake, which hit at 12.49pm (local time on Wednesday), was in the area of Silivri, some 80km to the west of Istanbul. It was at a depth of 6.92km, Turkey's AFAD disaster agency said. Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu said inspections did not reveal any damage to highways, airports, trains or subways. President Tayyip Erdogan said on X he was monitoring the situation and his office issued advice on what people should do in the case of further quakes. - Reuters
LBCI
19-04-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
Trial opens for students, journalists over Istanbul protests
A trial of nearly 200 people, among them students and journalists, arrested over Turkey's biggest protests in more than a decade opened in Istanbul on Friday. In the dock were 189 suspects who were rounded up in a government crackdown on the protests, which erupted following the March 19 detention and subsequent jailing of Istanbul's opposition mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu. As the trial opened, the Caglayan courthouse was packed with family members, journalists, university lecturers, and lawmakers from the main opposition CHP party, an AFP correspondent said. Most of the defendants were students, but among them were also eight Turkish journalists -- including AFP photographer Yasin Akgul -- who had been covering the biggest wave of street protests to grip Turkey since 2013. The suspects are facing a number of charges, notably "taking part in illegal rallies and marches" and "failing to disperse despite police warnings" -- offenses that could carry between six months to four years behind bars. Addressing the court on behalf of the journalists, lawyer Veysel Ok called for their acquittal on the grounds that they were reporting the news of the demonstrations. "They were there as journalists to cover the protests... that's what they are paid for," he told the judge. The judge rejected the acquittal request but agreed to separate their file from that of the students. According to the indictment, their claim to be journalists "has not been counted" because the police did not establish that they were present for journalistic purposes. "We want the journalists to be acquitted" because they are being tried on the basis of false evidence, Erol Onderoglu, the Turkey representative of Reporters Without Borders (RSF), told AFP. "Unfortunately, their prosecution is as arbitrary as their detention and arrest." AFP
Express Tribune
19-04-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Trial opens for Turkish students, journalists
A trial of nearly 200 people, among them students and journalists, arrested over Turkey's biggest protests in more than a decade opened in Istanbul on Friday. In the dock are 189 suspects who were rounded up in a government crackdown on the protests, which erupted following the March 19 detention and subsequent jailing of Istanbul's opposition mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. As the trial opened, the Caglayan courthouse was packed with family members, journalists, university lecturers and lawmakers from the main opposition CHP party, an AFP correspondent said. Most of the defendants were students, but among them were also eight Turkish journalists — including AFP photographer Yasin Akgul — who had been covering the biggest wave of street protests to grip Turkey since 2013. The suspects are facing a number of charges, notably "taking part in illegal rallies and marches" and "failing to disperse despite police warnings," court documents show. If convicted, they could face between six months to four years behind bars, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a statement. Addressing the court on behalf of the journalists, lawyer Veysel Ok called for their acquittal on grounds they were reporting the news of the protests. "They were there as journalists to cover the protests.. that's what they are paid for," he told the judge. The judge rejected the acquittal request but agreed to separate their file from that of the students. According to the indictment, their claim to be journalists "has not been counted" because the police did not establish that they were present for journalistic purposes, HRW said. "We want the journalists to be acquitted" because they are being tried on the basis of false evidence, Erol Onderoglu, the Turkey representative of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) told AFP. "Unfortunately, their prosecution is as arbitrary as their detention and arrest." For most of the youths, it was the first time they had joined a protest, as large-scale rallies have been largely non-existent since a government crackdown on the 2013 Gezi Park protests. "We want justice for our children. They need to be at their desks in university, not in prison," Avni Gundogdu, co-founder of The Parents' Solidarity Network, told AFP outside the court.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trial opens for students, journalists over Istanbul protests
A trial of nearly 200 people, among them students and journalists, arrested over Turkey's biggest protests in more than a decade opened in Istanbul on Friday. In the dock are 189 suspects who were rounded up in a government crackdown on the protests, which erupted following the March 19 detention and subsequent jailing of Istanbul's opposition mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. As the trial opened, the Caglayan courthouse was packed with family members, journalists, university lecturers and lawmakers from the main opposition CHP party, an AFP correspondent said. Most of the defendants were students, but among them were also eight Turkish journalists -- including AFP photographer Yasin Akgul -- who had been covering the biggest wave of street protests to grip Turkey since 2013. The suspects are facing a number of charges, notably "taking part in illegal rallies and marches" and "failing to disperse despite police warnings," court documents show. If convicted, they could face between six months to four years behind bars, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a statement. Addressing the court on behalf of the journalists, lawyer Veysel Ok called for their acquittal on grounds they were reporting the news of the protests. "They were there as journalists to cover the protests.. that's what they are paid for," he told the judge. The judge rejected the acquittal request but agreed to separate their file from that of the students. According to the indictment, their claim to be journalists "has not been counted" because the police did not establish that they were present for journalistic purposes, HRW said. "We want the journalists to be acquitted" because they are being tried on the basis of false evidence, Erol Onderoglu, the Turkey representative of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) told AFP. "Unfortunately, their prosecution is as arbitrary as their detention and arrest." - 'Justice for our children' - For most of the youths, it was the first time they had joined a protest, as large-scale rallies have been largely non-existent since a government crackdown on the 2013 Gezi Park protests. "We want justice for our children. They need to be at their desks in university, not in prison," Avni Gundogdu, co-founder of The Parents' Solidarity Network, told AFP outside the court. The Istanbul prosecutor's office said 819 people will be tried in 20 criminal investigations. After reviewing nine indictments involving 650 defendants, HRW criticised the "rushed nature and mass scale of the trials," saying the charges "lack evidence of criminal wrongdoing". "Given the glaring absence of evidence, it is hard not to conclude that the intended purpose of these rushed trials is to send a warning against exercising the rights to peaceful protest or free expression," said HRW's Europe and Central Asia director Hugh Williamson. Istanbul's jailed mayor is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's greatest political rival, and his arrest sparked protests that spread across the country, despite a ban on demonstrations in Turkey's three largest cities. Police cracked down using teargas, pepper spray and rubber bullets to disperse the crowds, and rounded up nearly 2,000 people, many during pre-dawn home raids. - Social media posts - HRW said 62 of those in court Friday were charged with carrying weapons or hiding their faces to avoid being identified "yet the only specifics provided... (was) an allegation that one protestor had a rock in his hand." Another 20 were charged with seeking to "incite a crime". But HRW said that "overwhelmingly" involved social media posts declaring a wish "to join people in the streets and statements against the government, and not calls for violence or criminality". With many family members unable to enter the courthouse due to tight security, hundreds protested by the metal barriers outside, closely watched by an army of police, an AFP correspondent said. "We are here for the trials of our friends who are in custody. We won't leave them on their own," a student called Ahmetcan Kaptan told AFP. fo-vid-hmw/rmb
BBC News
04-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Turkey protests: Journalist arrests fuel fears for democracy
It was early morning on 23 March when the police came to Yasin Akgul's door in Istanbul – while his children were still in bed. Just hours before, the Turkish photojournalist had returned home from covering mass anti-government protests. Now he was a wanted man."I went to the door and saw there was a lot of police," he says. "They said they had an arrest order for me but gave me no details. My son was awake, and I couldn't even tell him what was happening as I didn't get it myself."Akgul, 35, has seen "plenty of action" in more than a decade as a photojournalist with the AFP news agency – from war-torn Syria to IS-controlled Iraq. On home soil in Turkey, he has been beaten by the police several times while taking pictures, he says - including on World Peace Day – and has been detained "so many times".But being arrested at home was a first."A chill fell over the house," he tells us. "In my work, at the protests, I have seen a lot of violence, and tear gas, but having the police in my home, I felt more afraid."Akgul was one of seven journalists arrested in dawn raids. All had been covering the protests sparked by the arrest of the city's opposition mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu – the main political rival of Turkey's long-time leader, Recep Tayyip protesters say the mayor's arrest over corruption charges, which he denies, is politically motivated – an attempt to end his hopes of becoming the country's next authorities had banned the protests but had been unable to stop is facing charges of "taking part in illegal rallies and marches". He says the aim is clear – to stop others taking pictures of the biggest unrest in Turkey in more than a was in the thick of it – gas mask on – when he took some of the most iconic images of the night. His photos show a man dressed as a whirling dervish (a dancing mystic) being pepper-sprayed by a line of riot police – striking images of a battle for the soul of Turkey that went around the world, before landing him behind bars."This message is to all the journalists," he says. "Don't shoot (take pictures), don't speak, don't film. They are making other journalists afraid that if they go back into the field, they could face the same thing." The fact that he works for an international news agency, AFP, makes that message even louder, he has been received and understood."After we were arrested, many freelance journalists could not shoot the next day. Everyone was afraid," he told us, sitting on his couch at home with his wife Hazal by his side. Their three-year-old daughter, Ipek, lay on the couch, holding her father's hand. Their son, Umut, eight, listened on, wearing a Harry Potter-style hat and believes those arrested were carefully chosen – among them seasoned photojournalists. "They are trying to remove us from the front lines," he of his friends – fellow journalists - have already removed themselves, leaving Turkey because they faced charges or feared they now, his family is among many here worrying that they could be torn apart by the courts. The government says the judiciary is independent. Human rights groups say judges are under political control, and Turkish democracy is being eroded, year on Erdogan – who has many loyal supporters - retains a tight grip on the levers of power. He says the protests are "street terrorism" and accuses the opposition of leading "a movement of violence". He has predicted that the demonstrations will Maybe not. As Yasin Akgul was being released from prison on the morning of 27 March, the BBC's Mark Lowen was being deported from Istanbul, after 17 hours in detention. He was given papers saying he was "a threat to public order". The authorities later said – after the BBC reported the story – that he had been deported because he lacked not only journalists who are at risk. One of the mayor's own lawyers was detained briefly "on fictitious grounds", according to a social media post that Ekrem Imamoglu sent from his cell in a high security prison. His legal team fight on, but they too are feeling the chill. "The right to a defence, I think, is sacred. It's part of a fair trial that your lawyers should feel comfortable and safe," says Ece Guner, who is both a lawyer, and an adviser to the mayor."It would be a lie to say that no-one is worried, to be honest," she tells us, "but we still feel we have a duty to our country to say the truth, to preserve democracy, and the rule of law." Where does Turkish democracy stand now? Some here fear it's on its last the past two weeks or so – since the protests began on 19 March - around 2,000 people have been detained, according to Turkey's interior of those are students and members of Generation Erdogan – those who have only known the 22-year rule of Turkey's long-time leader. Arresting them sends another message."It's a huge warning to young people, a loud and clear warning – don't get involved," says Emma Sinclair-Webb, Turkey Director for Human Rights says the government has also been "lashing out in all directions against perceived opposition" from any quarter, not just the mayor's Republic People's Party (CHP), which is the main opposition party here."Public bodies are under threat," she says. "If they speak out and use their voices with authority, there is an attempt to stifle them immediately."She expects that the coming months will see continuing attempts to limit the protests, and "render them invisible".That won't be hard given the government's extensive control of the media here. The huge demonstrations held so far didn't lead the bulletins on state TV and pro-government outlets, and when they were shown the protesters were referred to as most recent rally - last weekend - attracted several hundred thousand people, at the least. The opposition claims more than two million people families brought several generations with them to hear calls for change under a warm sun. We saw the usual heavy police presence but this time there was no tear gas, or rubber bullets. This rally was not banned. Among the throng we met Alp, 32, who said he had come to defend democracy while there was still time. We didn't ask for a surname – many protesters prefer not to give theirs. He said he was concerned about the risk of arrest. "The police are collecting students, and women and working people like us," he said. "So, all of us are in danger right now. But we have to stand up. That's our only choice. If we don't do anything, if we just watch, the battle is lost already."The opposition is promising to keep up its protests and its campaign on the streets. It's pressing for presidential elections to be brought forward from 2028. Opposition polls suggest President Erdogan would lose to Imamoglu – if he were freed from jail and able to run as a president himself should not be able to run - as he is already in his second term - but there's speculation here that he could try to change the opposition insists there will be weekly protests from now on. If so, it looks certain that the arrests will unclear if Yasin Akgul's case will go to trial, but the charges against him remain. Despite the danger he hopes to keep telling the story here."Someone needs to do this job," he says, "and I think I am one of those people."
