Significant development in the case of the attack on the journalist

Journalist and author Yavuz Selim Demirağ was attacked in front of his home exactly 7 years ago after leaving a television program, beaten nearly to death with clubs, and hospitalized for a long time.

Although the 7 suspects who organized the attack were quickly found and detained, they were released under judicial control measures. The indictment was only prepared 2 years later, and it was requested that the suspects be sentenced to 20 years in prison each for the crimes of “intentional injury, armed threat, and insult.”

As was the case with the widespread attacks on journalists and politicians at that time, this case was to be heard in a criminal court of first instance under the scope of “intentional injury.”

However, Demirağ's lawyer, Erhan Tokatlı, objected, stating, “This is attempted murder. The case should be heard in a high criminal court.” The Ankara 54th Criminal Court of First Instance accepted this objection. After decisions of “lack of jurisdiction” were passed back and forth between the courts, the case was finally heard in the Ankara 36th High Criminal Court.

After approximately 2 years of trial, the defendants were sentenced to 9 years in prison each for the crimes of “intentional injury and threat.”

Appellate Court: “This Sentence is Too Light”

Upon the appeals of both Yavuz Selim Demirağ and the defendants, the 1st Criminal Chamber of the Ankara Regional Court of Justice, which reviewed the file, unanimously and definitively overturned the rulings made last December on two grounds.

The first of these concerned the charges of “threat and insult.” The Chamber pointed out that it was contrary to the Criminal Procedure Code (CMK) for the 36th High Criminal Court to hear the case on these charges, as the “threat and insult” charges were not included in the decision of lack of jurisdiction issued by the 54th Criminal Court of First Instance, where the case was originally filed.

The second and more important reversal was issued for the crime of “injury aggravated by its consequences.” The Chamber ruled that “the fact that Yavuz Selim Demirağ was followed to his residence, assaulted in the evening by more than one person with cutting tools and clubs in their possession, the severity of the danger created, the nature of the injury sustained by Demirağ, and the proportionality principle of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK)” meant that “it was not taken into account that the base sentence should have been determined at a higher amount than the written form.”

Forced Appearance Order for Three Defendants

Following this reversal decision, the retrial of the case began at the Ankara 36th High Criminal Court.

In yesterday's first session, in addition to Yavuz Selim Demirağ, only three of the six defendants and their lawyers were present.

The Presiding Judge announced that, in accordance with the notification from the 1st Criminal Chamber of the Regional Court of Justice, a report had been filed with the Ankara 54th Criminal Court of First Instance, and that the court had rectified the deficiency regarding the “threat and insult charges,” issued the necessary merger decision, and sent the file. The judge then gave the floor to the parties.

Yavuz Selim Demirağ emphasized that he had to undergo another surgery 1 month ago due to complications resulting from the attack, and requested that the defendants be tried for full attempted murder.

One of the defendants, Adem Yavuz, said, “I received the highest sentence even though I did not strike. Now, a heavier sentence is being requested.” His lawyer complained that the unfair provocation reduction was not applied to his client.

Upon this, the Presiding Judge asked, “On what grounds are you requesting the unfair provocation reduction?” The lawyer claimed that there had been a traffic dispute between the defendants and Demirağ beforehand, and stated that it was unclear who had assaulted and threatened Demirağ with what.

Another defendant, Emrah Yavuz, argued that he was not involved in the incident and did not participate in the fight, while Furkan Çelik stated that he would not make any statement.

Following the statements, the Court, evaluating that the reversal decision of the Regional Court of Justice was partially against the defendants, issued a forced appearance order for the defendants Orhan Çoban, Necmettin İnan, and Ali Adanur, who did not attend the first session despite being summoned, and adjourned the hearing to September 10.

Evaluating the developments, Demirağ's lawyer Erhan Tokatlı emphasized that there was no acquaintance or hostility between Demirağ and the defendants, which indicates that the attack was carried out on orders, and said, “Even if it is seen as aggravated injury rather than a deficiency in the qualification of the crime, i.e., attempted murder, it is an exemplary decision for such attacks. Under these conditions, we are grateful for this as well.”

Müyesser YILDIZ

May 1, 2026