Turkish Police have detained two suspects over a video in which the men said that, following an an ‘online auction’, a crime gang would assassinate investigative reporter Murat Agirel.
Turkish Police announced on Thursday that they have detained two people in an operation in Izmir province over a video in which the two men claim that an organised crime gang had been assigned after “an auction” to assassinate a well-known journalist, Murat Agirel.
“Suspects were detained at their residences in Izmir, and 3 guns, some narcotics, 4 mobile phones and 1 tripod were seized along with the individuals,” police said in statement on Thursday. They added that the suspects had previously committed other criminal offences.
Police said the two suspects claim in the video that, following what they called an “auction”, “the leader of the organised crime organisation Mahsun Kurucay will carry out an armed attack on journalist Murat Agirel”.
Agirel has frequently faced targeting for his investigative reporting.
“I have received similar intelligence before and have repeatedly informed the authorities,” Agirel wrote on X on September 3. “However, the people who wait in front of my house every day, watch me and rummage through my garbage demonstrate the reality of these threats.
“I face a new death threat every day. There is pressure to ban my books, there is constant surveillance in front of my house and lawsuits are being filed one after another. Regardless of the seriousness of today’s threat, it is my duty to inform the public while fighting for this country,” he added.
A report from Turkey’s Media and Law Studies Association MLSA, published in 2023, said the majority of Turkish journalists say they feel unsafe while doing their work because of physical assaults and online attacks. More than 80 per cent of them said they had encountered physical violence in the last five years and 79 per cent had been attacked online at least once during the same period.