Our correspondent Kayhan Ayhan was detained by police officers who arrived at his home during the night. Ayhan announced the news of his detention via a post on his social media account.

It was learned that our reporter, who has been covering the IBB case since the first hearing, was detained on charges of "spreading misleading information to the public."

REFERRED TO THE COURTHOUSE

Ayhan was taken to the Istanbul Police Headquarters on Vatan Street. Our reporter, who spent the night in detention, had his statement taken there.

Ayhan was referred to the Istanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan at around 12:30 today.

CHP Istanbul Provincial Chairman Özgür Çelik, CHP Şişli District Chairman Canercan Kartal, and numerous journalists came to the courthouse to provide support.

Speaking to BirGün during the courthouse visit, Özgür Çelik said, "Kayhan Ayhan is at the Çağlayan Courthouse because he committed the crime of enlightening the public."

REQUEST FOR ARREST

Our correspondent Kayhan Ayhan was referred to the criminal judgeship of peace with a request for arrest on charges of "publicly spreading misleading information to the public" without his prosecutor's statement being taken.

In the referral document from the prosecution, it was stated that posts made by Kayhan Ayhan regarding the trial process of Ekrem İmamoğlu on his X platform account and YouTube account had been examined.

In the prosecution's document, it was alleged that it had been "determined that information contrary to the truth was publicly spread with the motive of creating anxiety among the public" in the posts in question.

It was claimed that "facts indicating strong suspicion of crime and grounds for arrest exist" regarding Ayhan.

REPORTS ON THE IBB CASE FORM THE BASIS OF THE CHARGES

According to information obtained from his lawyers, Kayhan Ayhan’s news reports and social media posts regarding the IBB case, which is being heard at the Marmara Prison Complex in Silivri, form the basis of the charges.

Our reporter, who spent the night in custody at the Istanbul Police Headquarters on Vatan Avenue, was questioned. Ayhan is due to be transferred to the Istanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan today.

TERRORISM UNIT INVESTIGATION INTO JOURNALISTIC ACTIVITIES

Although all the charges and questions levelled at Ayhan relate directly to his journalistic activities and his reporting from the courtroom, it was notable that the investigation was launched not by the Press Bureau but by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office Terrorism Crimes Investigation Bureau. Ayhan was questioned about the exchanges recorded in the minutes of two separate hearings in the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) case.

DIALOGUE IN WHICH THE PROSECUTOR TOLD İMAMOĞLU TO ‘WE WILL PUT YOU IN YOUR PLACE’ INCLUDED IN THE INVESTIGATION FILE

The first question put to Ayhan concerned a video posted on his personal account regarding the ‘putting you in your place’ dispute that took place between Ekrem İmamoğlu and the trial prosecutor during the 17th hearing of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality case on 7 April. The dialogue from that hearing—which included the public prosecutor’s statement to İmamoğlu, “If you overstep your bounds, we will put you in your place”, and which formed the basis of the charges brought by the police—is as follows:

“Prosecutor: Mr Mayor, before we begin, I had a question for Mr İmamoğlu. Mr Ekrem, please go ahead. I have a question. You can listen in from there as well. I believe you made a statement yesterday following the trial; ‘The prosecution has been taken down’ and so on – is that correct?

Ekrem İmamoğlu: I’ll say something in a moment…

Prosecutor: Not in a moment – I’m asking you now. As such a statement has been made, I’d appreciate it if you could respond on that matter.

Ekrem İmamoğlu: I’ll address it in a moment.

Prosecutor: Before we define what constitutes a criminal organisation, please be mindful of your statement regarding the prosecution. A similar situation arose at the first hearing, in the form of an accusatory tone. As the prosecution, we do not accept this sort of rhetoric.

Ekrem İmamoğlu: You don’t engage in dialogue like that… Your Honour, this sort of thuggish behaviour…

Prosecutor: There is no question of thuggish behaviour or the like. Look, here in this trial… Just a moment, I’m speaking. Please refrain from making statements that cast a shadow over the trial or seek to put pressure on the prosecution. That is not the right approach.

Judge: Prosecutor, let’s do it this way, all right… Let’s not do that… All right… Let’s not do that… Prosecutor, there’s no need for that.

Prosecutor: Look, if you overstep your bounds, we will put you in your place as the prosecution. Do not overstep your bounds.”

THE “BUFFOONERY” DEBATE AND THE POST SHARING SUPPORT FOR THE NEWSPAPER ARE ALSO IN THE FILE

Another video shown to Ayhan was a BirGün TV broadcast concerning the row that broke out between the presiding judge and members of the public during the 61st hearing of the case, held on 2 July. Following the court’s insistence on concluding the first session of the trial by 9 July, reactions in the courtroom intensified, and the presiding judge had requested that İmamoğlu be removed from the courtroom. At this point, the court president’s remarks directed at Suat Özçağdaş, an Istanbul MP for the CHP who was in the public gallery – namely, “He can’t act like a buffoon here just because he’s an MP; take him outside” – were also included in the case file as evidence of an offence.

POST IN SUPPORT OF THE NEWSPAPER ALSO QUESTIONED

In addition to this, a post shared by our reporter on his social media account in solidarity with our newspaper – which read: “I wonder how many people bought the paper to show their support? This is how a free press is gradually disappearing. Support is essential” – was also included amongst the posts he was questioned about.

“MY ONLY JOB IS JOURNALISM”

In his statement to the police, our reporter Kayhan Ayhan, a journalist with 15 years’ professional experience, stated that his sole aim was to inform the public and defend the people’s right to information. Ayhan noted the following in his statement:

“The news reports, posts and broadcasts on the BirGün TV YouTube channel in question are concrete facts and statements relating to the case I was assigned to cover, known to the public as the ‘Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Case’. I, too, reported these events to the public without adding any commentary, within the scope of my journalistic profession. The statements written here are entirely taken from the defences of the defendants on trial in the case. If the prosecution so wishes, they may access the court records, footage and statements. My sole aim is for the public to be aware of what transpired in the case within the scope of my journalistic activities. Beyond this, they contain no comments or statements of my own. My sole profession is journalism. I do not accept the charges levelled against me.‘

”ALL THE NEWS HE REPORTED ACCURATELY REFLECTS THE TRUTH”

Ayhan’s lawyers also recorded the procedural irregularities and legal inconsistencies during the detention process in the statement transcript.

Stating that the charges in the case file lack a legal basis, Lawyer Sema Özdemir noted that for the offence under Article 217/A of the Turkish Penal Code (publicly disseminating misleading information) to be established, five elements must occur simultaneously; however, she pointed out that all the news reports Ayhan conveyed accurately reflected the apparent reality. Özdemir noted that the detention measure imposed was disproportionate and unlawful.

“THE INITIATION OF THE INVESTIGATION BY THE COUNTER-TERRORISM UNIT CONSTITUTES A CLEAR ABUSE OF AUTHORITY”

Lawyer Enes Hikmet Ermaner, meanwhile, emphasised that Ayhan’s detention at midnight from his home, whilst he was with his mother who is suffering from cancer, was in clear breach of the procedures for summons and taking statements set out in the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Describing the conduct of the investigation by the Counter-Terrorism Bureau as an “abuse of authority”, Ermaner said: “There is no terrorism-related charge levelled against my client in the case file, nor is there any mention of such a charge. Whilst the Press Bureau should have been handling this matter in accordance with the nature of the journalism profession, the fact that it was initiated by the Counter-Terrorism Bureau is a clear abuse of authority. Journalism is not a crime.”

“A LEGAL COMEDY”

Ayhan shared the post “I wonder how many people bought the newspaper to show their support? This is how a free press is gradually disappearing. Support is essential"—Ermaner reacted to the fact that even this post was used as grounds for a criminal charge, stating: “This situation alone clearly demonstrates just how irresponsibly this investigation and detention have been conducted. To label this as ‘misleading’ in the absence of any information is nothing short of a legal farce.”

Furthermore, recalling that the court proceedings in the IBB case are periodically recorded in audio and video, Ermaner noted that the prosecution’s allegation of “misleading information” without examining these recordings amounts to mere conjecture, and that the aim is to obstruct journalistic activities.

Both lawyers demanded Ayhan’s immediate release.

Note: This article is translated from the original article titled Muhabirimiz Kayhan Ayhan hakimliğe sevk edildi: Karar için ara verildi, published in BirGün newspaper on July 7, 2026.