Turkey court orders release of Russian reporters

ISTANBUL

A Turkish court on Dec. 7 ordered the release of two Russian journalists detained in Istanbul after they were accused of filming near a facility manufacturing drones without authorization, according to local media reports.

The journalists appeared before Istanbul's main court in Çağlayan on Dec. 7, Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency. reported.

Journalist Alexei Petrushko and cameraman Ivan Malyshkin were arrested by police in Istanbul on Dec. 3 morning.

The channel said they were still in detention on Dec. 3 evening and that subsequent calls and messages to them had gone unanswered.

A source in the Turkish Foreign Ministry previously said that the journalists were arrested while filming a unit manufacturing drones without permission.

“They came to Istanbul to film but had neither received authorization nor accreditation,” the source said.

The Russian embassy said it was in contact with Turkish authorities and hoped for “cooperation.”

Meanwhile, the Istanbul Governor’s Office had declared that a Turkish citizen near the Russian crew was detained.

Moscow and Ankara have agreed to jointly monitor a Russian-mediated truce over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region after a six-week war between Armenia and Azerbaijan that has claimed over 2,000 lives.