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[SITUATION] · [QUIET] · [CRIME]
2 clusters · 5 sources · 8 days · First seen · Last updated
Turkish investigation into misleading social media post
Overview
In late August 2026, prosecutors in Aydın, Turkey, launched a criminal investigation into the local newspaper Denge Gazetesi. The investigation followed a social media post that featured a graphic stating “Erdoğan Vefat Etti” (Erdoğan Has Died). While the linked article correctly reported on the death of a private citizen named Gülşen Erdoğan, authorities alleged the social media graphic was designed to imply the death of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to generate clicks.
Three journalists were initially detained under Article 217/A of the Turkish Penal Code for “Publicly Spreading Misleading Information.” By early September, journalist İrem Delice was jailed following a prosecutor's appeal, despite an initial release under judicial supervision. The newspaper has maintained that the publication was a routine local death notice with no intent to deceive. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has criticized the arrest, describing it as an abuse of Turkey’s 2022 disinformation law to criminalize journalism.
Entities
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan · Aydın Chief Public Prosecutor's Office · İrem Delice · Aydın Denge · Aydın
Timeline
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15 days ago
[POLITICS] 2 sourcesTurkish journalist jailed over social media post using president's surnameJournalist İrem Delice was jailed in Turkey after a social media post about a local woman named Gülşen Erdoğan was flagged as disinformation due to her shared surname with President Erdoğan.
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22 days ago
[CRIME] 4 sourcesAydın prosecutors investigate newspaper over misleading Erdoğan death postTurkish prosecutors have detained three journalists from Aydın Denge Gazetesi following a clickbait social media post that falsely implied the death of President Erdoğan.
Sources
dorzeczy.pl · journalisten.se · medyahaber.com · stockholmcf.org · ulusalpost.com