Turkey’s government continues its attempts to silence news from Southeast Anatolia amid widespread human rights allegations by placing a 13^th DİHA journalist under arrest

A Turkish court arrested Dicle News Agency (DİHA) journalist Şermin Soydan on 14 May, making her the 13^th reporter from the agency to be arrested in the past five months due to their work that has particularly focused on the Turkish government’s war in largely Kurdish Southeast Anatolia.

Soydan was detained on 12 May in the eastern province of Van before being arrested for alleged “spying” that stemmed from a story she published on 21 February detailing plans for a massive security operation in the eastern district of Yüksekova (Gever). Last month, she became the target of Hürriyet’s Abdulkadir Selvi, a columnist who is known for his closeness to the Palace of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who suggested that her story proved an alliance between the Turkish government’s ally-turned-enemy, the Gülen movement, and the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

DİHA journalists now account for more than a third of the 37 journalists who are currently under arrest in Turkey.

Here is a look at the other DİHA journalists who have been arrested in the last five months.

Nuri Akman – Under arrest since 2 February 2016

Akman was arrested after going to provide testimony in Malatya due to news pieces he had filed in Kobane, photographs he had taken, as well as posts he had shared on social media. Akman filed a number of stories from Şırnak’s (Şirnex) Cizre (Cizîr) district during a military siege despite receiving constant threats from security forces.

Nedim Oruç – Under arrest since 6 January 2016

Oruç was captured by security forces before being dragged and bundled into an armored personal carrier in the southeastern district of Silopi (Silopiya) during a military siege that began in the area in December 2015. His capture prompted worries that he could become “disappeared,” especially after security forces said they had no information about his whereabouts. A subsequent social media campaign forced police forces to acknowledge that it was holding Oruç.

Nazım Daştan – Under arrest since 11 February 2016

Like Oruç, Daştan was detained in Silopi while it was still under siege. He was subsequently transferred to Gaziantep, where he was arrested due to Facebook posts. In his news reports, Daştan had documented the relations between Ankara and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

Feyyaz Irmak – Under arrest since 15 February 2016

Irmak was detained on 11 February in the southern province of Antalya before being arrested on charges of being a “member of a terrorist organization.” The prosecutor included his presence as a journalist at press statements as one of the reasons for his arrest.

Mazlum Dolan – Under arrest since 23 February 2016

Dolan filed numerous news reports from Diyarbakır’s (Amed) Sur (Sûr) district, which has been subjected to a government bombardment since 2 December 2015 that has killed dozens of people, for 84 days before he was rescued from a besieged position as the result of a campaign by colleagues and human rights defenders. While Dolan was rescued from physical harm, he was promptly detained and arrested by Turkish security forces.

Ziya Ataman – Under arrest since 11 April 2016

Ataman was detained on 10 April while covering a news story in Van’s (Wan) Edremit (Artemêtan) district before being arrested on charges of “membership in a terrorist organization.”

Meltem Oktay – Under arrest since 12 April 2016

Oktay filed a number of stories from Mardin’s Nusaybin (Nisêbîn) district, which has been under a government siege since mid-March, until she was detained by security forces at her residence on 11 April. Questioned as to “what kind of news” she did, Oktay was finally arrested because she “succeeded in acquiring the news in a fashion that journalists cannot take advantage of.”

Muhammed Doğru – Under arrest on 20 April 2016

Doğru, a DİHA journalist and student at Sakarya University, was detained in a raid on 15 April before being arrested for “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” and “membership in a terrorist organization.”

Bilal Güldem – Under arrest since 24 April 2016

Güldem was detained in the southeastern province of Batman (Êlih) while he was returning from covering a story. Subsequently transferred to Mardin, Güldem was arrested on account of news notes and numbers on his telephone, while prosecutors also accused him of being a member of the YPS-Jin – a guerrilla organization that is only open to women.

Mehmet Hakkı Yılmaz – Under arrest since 4 May 2016

Yılmaz was detained as he went to cover the aftermath of an ISIL attack on a police station in Gaziantep before being arrested on charges of “membership in a terrorist organization.” Yılmaz’s roommate, Cahit Özbek, was also beaten before being detained.

Abdulkadir Turay – Under arrest since 9 May 2016

Turay was detained on 5 May in Mardin’s (Mêrdîn) Savur (Stewr) district along with four others who were representatives from the local municipality and members from the Democratic Regions Party (DBP). Turay was formally arrested four days later along with the other four on charges of “aiding abetting a terrorist organization.”

Sendika.Org