Prosecutor demands aggravated life sentence for Turkish journalist sued by Erdo?an

A Turkish prosecutor has demanded aggravated life sentence along with a life sentence and 42 years jail term for daily Cumhuriyet's editor-in-chief Can Dündar as President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an has filed a criminal complaint over a critical news report, after he said they would pay a ?heavy price.?

The footage released by Cumhuriyet on May 29 showed gendarmerie and police officers opening crates on the back of the trucks which contain what the daily described as weapons and ammunition sent to Syria by Turkey?s  National Intelligence Organization (M?T) in January 2014.

?This slander and illegitimate operation against the M?T are, in a way, an act of espionage. This newspaper is involved in this espionage activity, too,? Erdo?an said during an interview with public broadcaster TRT late May 31. ?I suppose the person who wrote this as an exclusive report will pay a heavy price for this,? he added, referring to Cumhuriyet?s editor-in-chief, Can Dündar.

On June 2, scores of Cumhuriyet editors and columnists appeared on the newspaper?s front page, proclaiming that all of them were responsible for the report in tandem with a social media campaign, #CanDündarYaln?zDe?ildir (Can Dündar is not alone).

Continuing his tough stance on the matter, Erdo?an filed an individual criminal complaint against Dündar and Cumhuriyet on June 2, claiming that the story ?included some footage and information that are not factual.? 

The criminal complaint, filed to Ankara Chief Prosecutor?s Office to be sent to Istanbul where Cumhuriyet is based, argued that the newspaper ?joined the actions? of the followers of U.S.-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gülen, Erdo?an?s erstwhile ally, whose followers in the judicial and security organs are now described by...