ISTANBUL (AP) – Two Turkish journalists went on trial on Friday on allegations that they revealed state secrets and helped a terror organization with their reports on alleged government-arms smuggling to Syrian rebels, in a closed-door trial that has increased concern about the erosion of media freedoms in Turkey.
Cumhuriyet newspaper’s chief editor Can Dundar and Ankara representative Erdem Gul face life imprisonment if found guilty of charges of espionage and of aiding the moderate Islamic movement led by U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, a foe of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The pair are on trial for publishing images that reportedly date back to January 2014, when local authorities searched Syria-bound trucks, leading to a standoff with Turkish intelligence officials. Cumhuriyet said the images proved Turkey was smuggling arms to Islamist rebels.
The prosecutor asked that the hearing proceed behind closed doors, a request that was granted by the court, according to local media. Turkey’s private Dogan news agency said the court also accepted that the Turkish president and national intelligence organization be plaintiffs in the case.
International media advocacy groups, who are pressing Turkey to drop charges, are closely watching Friday’s opening hearing. The trial is seen as a bellwether of the future of press freedom in the country, which has witnessed a growing crackdown on independent and opposition media over the past few years.