Turkey seeks 18-year jail for released German-Turkish journalist
A court in Istanbul has agreed on the conditional release of German-Turkish journalist Deniz Yucel, 44, who is pending trial for terror-related charges in Turkey.
Anadolu news agency reported on Friday that prosecutors accused Yucel of "making terror propaganda" and "inciting public hatred and hostility".
His indictment, and in turn release on bail, came one year after his incarceration by Turkish officials on suspicion of spreading terror-related propaganda.
If Yucel, who is an employee of German newspaper Die Welt, is found guilty, he would face a prison sentence of up to 18 years.
His extended imprisonment at the Silivri prison on the outskirts of Istanbul without trial or charges had left a negative impact on relations between Turkey and Germany.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the detention of Yucel, and other German citizens, "clouded" the relations and marked a continuing "burden".
German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel called for Yucel to be allowed to leave Turkey.
Many German newspapers marked Yucel's first year in custody without charge with front-page stories this week, when the #FreeDeniz campaign held a major solidarity event in the German capital.
In December, an Istanbul court released Turkish-born German journalist Mesale Tolu, who was held for over half a year on a charge of membership in the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP), which is banned in Turkey as what Ankara calls a terror organization. She was freed into judicial control, which means Tolu will have to report to the authorities every week and cannot leave the country.
Yucel and Tolu were two of many German nationals detained by Turkish authorities following a failed coup in July 2016 in Turkey. Since then, over 55,000 people have been arrested in a wide-scale crackdown against suspected coup plotters and alleged members of terrorist organizations.
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