Two prominent Turkish investigative journalists were released on bail on Friday, with their newspapers denouncing their arrests on blackmail charges as attempted intimidation by the authorities.
Timur Soykan and Murat Agirel had their homes searched and were taken into custody on Thursday after they investigated the sale of television station Flash Haber TV to a Turkish tycoon.
Their employers鈥攐pposition dailies Birgun and Cumhuriyet respectively鈥攕aid they believed the reporters had also been targeted because of their separate investigation into the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
鈥榃e were subject to a great injustice... but we鈥檙e happy we weren鈥檛 sent to prison,鈥� Soykan told the press as he left an Istanbul court.
鈥榃e were on the trail of a scandal,鈥� he said of their probe into the acquisition of Flash Haber TV.
He said he and Agirel had just been 鈥榙oing our job as journalists鈥�.
The two, who are among Turkey鈥檚 best-known investigative journalists, were arrested on Thursday morning on allegations they had carried out 鈥榯hreats鈥� and 鈥榖lackmail鈥� during their probe into Flash Haber TV.
Officials seized electronic equipment from their homes.
On Thursday, the chairman of the board of Birgun said the authorities were attempting to gag the press.
鈥楾he government鈥檚 target is not crime and criminals but real journalists who fight to convey the truth,鈥� Ibrahim Aydin wrote on X.
Soykan and Agirel had recently raised concerns about the arrest of Imamoglu, who is seen as the main rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Media rights group Reporters Without Borders said they posted a YouTube video alleging there had been irregularities in official probes targeting Imamoglu and several other district mayors from the main opposition CHP party.
鈥楯ournalists have to get used to having their houses searched and being arrested when they carry out investigations,鈥� Soykan said on Friday.
鈥榃e won鈥檛 stop writing what we know to be true,鈥� Cumhuriyet quoted Agirel as saying.
Imamoglu鈥檚 arrest on March 19 triggered the largest wave of protests in Turkey in more than a decade.
At least 13 Turkish journalists have been arrested since the start of the protests, accused of participating in illegal gatherings they say they were covering as part of their job.
A Swedish journalist was also arrested in Istanbul and accused of 鈥榯errorism鈥� and 鈥榠nsulting鈥� Erdogan.
