Istanbul, September 29, 2026—Turkey is blatantly using its disinformation law to detain and arrest journalists, with two more reporters arrested in recent days. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls urgently on authorities to repeal this poorly conceived legislation and release all those unjustly held.
Ali Tarakçı, a journalist who broadcasts on
YouTube
, was
arrested
on September 26 and
Fatih Ergin
, news coordinator for the left-wing nationalist daily
Nefes
, was
arrested
on September 28, both on suspicion of spreading disinformation.
“When the disinformation law came into force in 2022, Turkish authorities promised it would not target journalists, but today we see it being used with alarming regularity to silence journalists and prevent them from doing their jobs,” said Özgür Öğret, CPJ’s Turkey representative.
“Since the beginning of 2026 alone, more than a dozen journalists have been detained or arrested under this legislation. This must stop. Ali Tarakçı, Fatih Ergin and all journalists harassed, detained and arrested under this law must be freed and the law itself should be abolished at once.”
Tarakçı was
taken into custody
at his house
around midnight
on September 25 and arrested pending trial by
Ankara’s 8th
Criminal Court the next day on suspicion of “publicly spreading disinformation.”
Ali Tarakçı (left) (Screenshot: Ali Tarakçı/YouTube) Fatih Ergin (Screenshot: Meltem TV/YouTube)
His detention came after he
posted
on X on September 23 that “a very important minister will resign on Friday”; local media
linked
his arrest to this post. Tarakçı’s X account has since
been blocked
in Turkey.
Ergin
was taken into police custody in Istanbul on September 27, his lawyer
posted on X
.
Local media
said his arrest was related to a post on X referring to
the death
of Turgay Tamer, a doctor who was briefly detained this month as part of a
reopened
investigation into the 2011 death in custody of former Turkish intellig
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