Turkey detains journalists and activists before NATO summit

In the days leading up to the 36th NATO summit in Ankara (July 7‑8, 2026), coordinated police operations were carried out in several Turkish cities, including Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa, Kocaeli, Çanakkale, Antalya and others. The raids resulted in the detention of more than 100 people – among them journalists Buse Söğütlü (T24) and Ceren Erdoğdu (Oda TV), members of the Turkey Communist Party (TKP), lawyers from the Contemporary Lawyers Association, academics, students and activists opposed to NATO and Turkey’s foreign‑policy stance.

A court later ordered judicial control for many of those arrested, while three individuals were sent to a criminal court on a request for detention. In Bursa, twelve detainees were presented to the court; three were sentenced to imprisonment and nine released under judicial control. International legal bodies—including European Democratic Lawyers, the German Bar Association, the New York City Bar Association and others—issued a joint statement demanding the immediate release of the detained lawyers and expressing deep concern over restricted access to legal counsel.

Domestic groups such as the Laiklik Meclisi also condemned the arrests, calling them an attempt to suppress dissent and urging the release of all detainees. Authorities defended the operations as targeting a “terrorist youth network,” while human‑rights organisations framed them as a crackdown on freedom of expression and the right to protest ahead of the NATO summit.