Erdem Gül

The decision by the Constitutional Court on the release of jailed journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül was not a surprise. It is in line with the top court's other verdicts on human rights matters.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdo?an reacted harshly against the release of two journalists, Can Dündar and Erdem Gül, on Feb. 28.

Turkey's opposition parties have expressed their fury over remarks made by President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an, who said he had "no respect" for a recent Constitutional Court decision on two arrested journalists, while the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has stood by the statement.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an has criticized the recent Constitutional Court ruling that paved the way for the release of two arrested journalists, saying he "does not accept or respect" the decision and vowing not to "obey" it.

Two Turkish journalists - daily editor-in-chief Cumhuriyet Can Dündar and its Ankara bureau chief Erdem Gül - were released from prison in the early hours of Feb. 26 after being in pre-trial detention for 92 days. The release came after a decision by the Constitutional Court on the evening of Feb. 25.

Last night, breaking news came out from the reporters who had been waiting for hours at the gates of Turkey's Constitutional Court. The court had ruled that the rights of daily Cumhuriyet Editor-in-Chief Can Dündar and Ankara bureau chief Erdem Gül had been violated. In other words, these journalists, who had been in jail for 92 days, had to be released. 

Turkey's top court has refused an appeal by the families of the 34 people who were killed by a Turkish jet airstrike on the Iraq border in late 2011 on procedural grounds, around a year-and-a-half after the families filed their individual complaints to the court.

Prominent columnist Cengiz Çandar faces four years in jail for "insulting" President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an in seven opinion pieces published on the Radikal news website. 

The release of two prominent Turkish journalists, who had been arrested and detained for months over a story on state-owned trucks allegedly carrying weapons to Syria, has been met with praise by the international community. 

Family members, friends, MPs, and other prominent figures greeted daily Cumhuriyet journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül upon their release from Silivri Prison near Istanbul late on Feb. 25, after Turkey’s Constitutional Court ruled that their rights had been violated.