Turkish columnist faces probe for ‘insulting Erdoğan’
ISTANBUL
Two separate probes have been launched against Cengiz Çandar, Radikal news portal columnist, for his seven articles allegedly insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. “The personal rights of my client, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, were abused by accusation via press including insults,” said Erdoğan’s lawyer, Ahmet Özel, in his petition.
In a notice from a prosecutor’s office, seven articles of the columnist, which were published between July 26 and August 19, were cited.
Separately, Hürriyet newspaper columnist Ertuğrul Özkök ruled out in his Nov. 11 article claims that he was called to testify by the prosecutor’s office.
Pro-government broadcaster A Haber claimed a day earlier that upon an Istanbul public prosecutor’s invitation to Özkök to testify with a similar accusation of insulting Erdoğan, the columnist allegedly went abroad.
Özkök completely ruled out the claims in his column.
