Earlier today, 12 journalists were detained in the cities of Ankara, İstanbul, Van, Diyarbakır, Urfa, Mersin and Mardin in simultaneous house raids as part of an anti-terror investigation led by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. Those detained are Mezopotamya News Agency (MA) managing editor Diren Yurtsever; MA reporters Deniz Nazlım, Selman Güzelyüz, Zemo Ağgöz, Berivan Altan, Hakan Yalçın, Emrullah Acar, and Ceylan Şahinli; and JINNEWS reporters Habibe Eren and Öznur Değer. Another JINNEWS reporter, Derya Ren, was detained in Diyarbakır as part of a separate investigation, the details of which are also not yet known.

After police custody, Ren was referred to the courthouse, where she was remanded in custody after the sentence handed to her was read out in her presence. The journalist was sent to Diyarbakır Women’s Closed Prison.

According to the Dicle Firat Journalists' Association (DFG) report on violations of journalists' rights by the Turkish state for the month of September, at least 72 journalists are currently in prison, with cases against the same number pending.