Prominent journalist Altaylı remains jailed after first hearing
An imprisoned Turkish journalist appeared in court on Oct. 3 for the first time to defend himself against accusations that he threatened President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Fatih Altaylı, a veteran journalist whose YouTube program attracts hundreds of thousands of views daily, was arrested at his home in June and charged with issuing and publicly disseminating a threat against the president.
The probe was prompted by comments Altaylı made in a video published on his YouTube channel, which prosecutors claimed targeted Erdoğan and contained threatening language.
Facing a minimum five-year prison sentence, the 63-year-old strongly denied the accusations in the opening hearing.
Altaylı told the judges that he had consistently supported the vulnerable throughout his career and had no intention of making a threat. The journalist urged the judges to watch his speech.
“In the more than 40 years of my professional life — and throughout my entire life — I have never threatened a single person, whether weaker or stronger than me,” Altaylı reportedly told the judges.
“On the contrary, I have always been the one threatened.”
The court rejected a request from lawyers for Altaylı to release him from prison pending the outcome of the trial and adjourned the case until Nov. 26.
Despite his incarceration, the journalist, columnist and television presenter whose career spans decades, has continued to deliver news and political commentary on his YouTube channel through letters relayed by his lawyers and read aloud by his assistant.
