Breaking News... Prosecution questioning concluded: Fatih Altaylı arrested

Journalist Fatih Altaylı was detained yesterday evening due to a broadcast he made on his personal YouTube channel on June 20, on charges of "threatening the President." Following the detention process, Altaylı was referred to the Istanbul Criminal Court of Peace with a request for his arrest.

An arrest warrant was issued for Fatih Altaylı on charges of 'threatening the President.'

In a written statement issued by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, it was stated that the investigation was initiated ex officio, and the following remarks were included:

“An ex officio investigation has been initiated against Fatih Altaylı for the crime of Threatening the President (pursuant to Article 106/1 in conjunction with Article 310/2 of the Turkish Penal Code) due to his threatening remarks targeting our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the broadcast dated 20/06/2025 on the ‘YouTube’ social media channel bearing his own name, and the aforementioned individual was apprehended and detained today in accordance with the instructions given to the Istanbul Police Department.”

In his statement to the police, Altaylı argued that the words he used in the broadcast did not carry any intent of threat or insult. In his statement, he said, “My words are in the nature of commentary; there is no criminal element. I request a decision of non-prosecution.”

FIRST STATEMENT FROM HIS WIFE

Fatih Altaylı's wife, Hande Altaylı, stated after the decision, "The decision itself is what needs to be explained. We are not in a position to explain anything; we cannot explain this situation."

"FATİH BEY WILL SERVE HIS TIME LIKE A LION AND COME OUT"

Altaylı's lawyer, Ömer Teker, noted the following in his first statement:

"Even before we were referred, before we were notified, the referral articles and documents were already appearing on the internet before we could even see them. There is nothing to say. We have seen once again that the rule of law has ended. Fatih Bey will serve his time like a lion and come out."

WHAT HAD ALTAYLI SAID?

In the broadcast in question, Altaylı had used the following expressions:

"Except for a significant portion of AKP voters and a portion of MHP voters, no one would approve of such a thing. Look at the history of this nation, and I am not even talking about the recent past, look at its distant past... This nation is a nation that has strangled its sultans. When it didn't like it, when it didn't want it. It is not a small number of Ottoman sultans who were killed, fell victim to assassination, or were strangled or made to look like they committed suicide..."

'I HAVE NO INTENT TO THREATEN OR INSULT'

In his statement to the prosecutor, Fatih Altaylı noted the following:

'In the broadcast we made on June 20, I have no intent to threaten or insult the President. Research conducted by polling companies asked whether they approved of President Erdoğan serving as President for life, and 70 percent of citizens said they would not approve of such a constitutional amendment. In this broadcast we made, I stated that the Turkish people have loved and adopted being effective in state administration by voting since the Tanzimat era, and that they do not like to give prior permission to any person to hold high-level positions in the state outside of their own will and control. I expressed, with my intellectual identity interested in history, that the Turkish people can always take a critical stance against those who govern them, and that even during the era of the sultans, the sultans were criticized. The same or similar things to what I said have been said many times in the past by scientists who are experts on our recent history, such as Murat Bardakçı and Erhan Afyoncu.'

'THE VIDEO WAS EDITED TO CREATE THE PERCEPTION THAT I AM THREATENING'

In the continuation of his statement, Altaylı said the following:

'There is absolutely no statement of mine here that could be construed as a threat or a perception of a threat against the President. There is not even any implication. I see that the integrity of the event's meaning has been changed and distorted, and that my statements, which were intended only to provide historical information, have been deliberately reflected as if I were threatening the President. I am not responsible for this distortion of perception and the twisting of my words. Because when the videos in the USB that I submitted to the prosecutor's office, which are the subject of the crime, are watched, the original video, which is approximately 3 minutes long, is the video where I make explanations and provide historical information. The other short video, which is approximately 30 seconds long, is a video edited by cutting these videos to create a sense of integrity as if I were threatening the President and presented to the public. When the original video is watched, it will be clearly seen that I did not make a threatening speech in the eyes of the public by referring to the President in any way, and that the speech was entirely historical. Throughout my 45-year professional life, I have participated in countless television programs and written columns. In none of these, let alone the President, have I ever threatened any citizen. I have not even undergone any judicial investigation or prosecution for these accusations before. I definitely have no intent to threaten here; I used my right to criticize President Erdoğan, whom I know personally; threatening is something I never do. Furthermore, I saw in the prosecutor's referral document that I was accused under Article 310/2 of the TPC. However, it is clearly stated that a physical act is required for this crime to occur. For this reason, the material elements of the crime have not been formed solely due to my words.'

News Source: 12punto