Turkish opposition journalists on trial for aiding ‘terror’

A man holds a portrait of jailed journalist Kadri Gursel on July 24, 2017 during a demonstration outside Istanbul's courthouse. Seventeen directors and journalists from Cumhuriyet, one of Turkey's most respected opposition newspapers, go on trial on July 24 after spending over eight months behind bars in a case which has raised new alarm over press freedoms under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. (AFP)

ISTANBUL: Journalists and staff from a Turkish newspaper staunchly opposed to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are going on trial in Istanbul, accused of aiding terror organizations — a case that has added to concerns over rights and freedoms in Turkey.
Seventeen of the defendants, including Cumhuriyet’s editor-in-chief Murat Sabuncu, investigative journalist Ahmet Sik, commentator Kadri Gursel and cartoonist Musa Kart were set to appear in court on Monday, on charges of sponsoring several outlawed organizations, including Kurdish militants, a far-left group and the network of US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen who is blamed for last year’s failed coup.
Two other defendants are being tried in absentia.
Their arrests were part of a widespread crackdown in the wake of the coup, which has led to the imprisonment of more than 50,000 people.