Turkey jails reporter from German paper: witnessFebruary 28, 2017 - 19:13 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish authorities on Monday, February 27 arrested a reporter for a prominent German newspaper on charges of propaganda in support of a terrorist organization and inciting the public to violence, Reuters reports citing a court witness. Authorities initially detained Deniz Yucel, a correspondent for the Die Welt newspaper, on February 14 after he reported on emails that a leftist hacker collective had purportedly obtained from the private account of Berat Albayrak, Turkey's energy minister and the son-in-law of President Tayyip Erdogan. On Monday, an Istanbul court ordered Yucel, a dual citizen of Turkey and Germany, jailed pending trial, a witness at the court told Reuters. He is the first German reporter to be held in a widespread crackdown that has followed the failed July 15 coup in Turkey and frequently targeted the media. More than 100,000 people have been sacked or suspended from Turkey's police, military, civil service and private sector since the failed coup and tens of thousands arrested. Ankara says the measures are necessary given the security threats it faces. But Turkey's allies, including Germany, fear President Tayyip Erdogan is using the purges as a pretext to curtail dissent. Relations between the NATO allies have been strained by the coup, but Germany desperately needs to Turkey for its part in a deal to stop the flow of migrants into Europe. In a statement, German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized the move as "bitter and disappointing" and called it "disproportionate." "The German government expects that the Turkish judiciary, in its treatment of the Yucel case, takes account of the high value of freedom of the press for every democratic society. We will continue to insist on a fair and legal treatment of Deniz Yücel and hope that he will soon regain his freedom," she said. Germany's foreign minister, Sigmar Gabriel, was even more harsh in his assessment of the case, saying it showed in "glaring light" the differences in the two countries in evaluating freedom of press and freedom of opinion. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Titus, Bilirakis lead legislation to sanction Azerbaijani war criminals Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) have introduced the bipartisan legislation. Armenia: Defense Ministry warns against involving army in political processes The Ministry’s statement came after a video surfaced online, showing soldiers joining the protests in Tavush. Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. |