Latest news with #DoganPehlevan
Malay Mail
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
LeMan magazine editor held in Turkiye after Erdogan brands cartoon a ‘despicable provocation' insulting the Prophet
ISTANBUL, July 13 — The top editor of Turkey's satirical magazine LeMan has been arrested, media and lawyers said yesterday, the latest detention over accusations that the magazine had published a caricature of the Prophet Mohammed. Four magazine staffers were detained in early July over a cartoon that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has labelled a 'despicable provocation' and a 'hate crime,' warning its authors will have to answer for 'disrespecting the prophet.' The magazine and its staff have vigorously denied any link between an illustration published in the magazine, which features a person named Muhammed, and Islam's Prophet Mohammed. The name Muhammed, which has various spellings, is among the most popular names the Muslim faithful give their children. On Saturday the magazine's editor-in-chief, Aslan Ozdemir, was arrested as he flew back to Turkey from France, the MSLA human rights organisation wrote on X. Several media outlets, including the DHA agency and the T24 website, released images showing Ozdemir leaving the plane, handcuffed. The drawing in question shows two characters meeting in the sky above a city devastated by bombs. One is named Muhammed and the other Musa. Cartoonist Dogan Pehlevan said the drawing was meant 'to talk about peace' and condemned 'provocateurs.' 'I have been drawing in Turkey for many years. The first rule you learn is not to address religious issues and not to mock religion,' he told police in his deposition, according to the T24 news site. 'I have always adhered to this principle. I reject the accusations levelled against me,' he added. LeMan's editorial manager Tuncay Akgun told AFP that the drawing in question 'has nothing to do with the Prophet Mohammed. We would never take such a risk.' 'The character is a Muslim killed in Gaza. He was called Mohammed (like) over 200 million people in the Muslim world,' he said. — AFP
Malay Mail
13-07-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
LeMan magazine editor held in Turkey after Erdogan brands cartoon a ‘despicable provocation' insulting the Prophet
ISTANBUL, July 13 — The top editor of Turkey's satirical magazine LeMan has been arrested, media and lawyers said yesterday, the latest detention over accusations that the magazine had published a caricature of the Prophet Mohammed. Four magazine staffers were detained in early July over a cartoon that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has labelled a 'despicable provocation' and a 'hate crime,' warning its authors will have to answer for 'disrespecting the prophet.' The magazine and its staff have vigorously denied any link between an illustration published in the magazine, which features a person named Muhammed, and Islam's Prophet Mohammed. The name Muhammed, which has various spellings, is among the most popular names the Muslim faithful give their children. On Saturday the magazine's editor-in-chief, Aslan Ozdemir, was arrested as he flew back to Turkey from France, the MSLA human rights organisation wrote on X. Several media outlets, including the DHA agency and the T24 website, released images showing Ozdemir leaving the plane, handcuffed. The drawing in question shows two characters meeting in the sky above a city devastated by bombs. One is named Muhammed and the other Musa. Cartoonist Dogan Pehlevan said the drawing was meant 'to talk about peace' and condemned 'provocateurs.' 'I have been drawing in Turkey for many years. The first rule you learn is not to address religious issues and not to mock religion,' he told police in his deposition, according to the T24 news site. 'I have always adhered to this principle. I reject the accusations levelled against me,' he added. LeMan's editorial manager Tuncay Akgun told AFP that the drawing in question 'has nothing to do with the Prophet Mohammed. We would never take such a risk.' 'The character is a Muslim killed in Gaza. He was called Mohammed (like) over 200 million people in the Muslim world,' he said. — AFP
Malay Mail
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
Turkish cartoon row deepens: ‘LeMan' staff remanded over ‘disrespectful' drawing
ISTANBUL, July 3 — Four staff members at satirical Turkish magazine LeMan were remanded in custody Wednesday over accusations they published a caricature of the Prophet Muhammad, a case that watchdogs have called an attack on press freedom. The four, who deny any link between the illustration and the prophet, were held as part of prosecutors' probe into what Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc called the 'disrespectful drawing'. He added that a warrant has been issued for two additional suspects who were abroad. The publication of the cartoon and arrests of staff at the opposition magazine led to clashes in Istanbul on Monday. News site T24 published the police deposition of cartoonist Dogan Pehlevan in which he said that he wanted 'to talk about peace in this drawing' and condemned 'provocateurs'. 'I have been drawing in Turkey for many years. The first rule you learn is not to address religious issues and not to mock religion,' he said. 'I have always adhered to this principle. I reject the accusations levelled against me,' he added. The drawing in question shows two characters meeting in the sky above a city devastated by bombs. One is named Muhammed and the other Musa. 'I just wanted to highlight the absurdity of war, to show that people can get along but do you have to be dead to realise that? That's my only message,' he added. On Monday evening, a favourite haunt of LeMan staff in the Istiklal district of Istanbul was attacked. It escalated into a pitched battle between about 300 people, including people defending the magazine and furious at the arrests. On Tuesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the cartoon a 'despicable provocation' and a 'hate crime' whose authors will have to answer for 'disrespecting the prophet'. 'Political opportunists' Despite a ban, some 300 people also gathered around Taksim Mosque in central Istanbul, shouting 'don't forget Charlie Hebdo', referring to a deadly Islamist militant attack on the French magazine in 2015. LeMan's editor-in-chief Tuncay Akgun told AFP that the drawing in question 'has nothing to do with the Prophet Muhammad', adding: 'We would never take such a risk.' 'The character is a Muslim killed in Gaza... He was called Muhammed (like) more than 200 million people in the Muslim world,' he said. In a joint statement, Turkey's TGS press union and professional organisations said they had 'great concern' at the rise in attacks and 'violent rhetoric' due to the publication. Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, the international network Cartooning for Peace and the US association Cartoonists Rights condemned the attack on press freedom in Turkey. They called on the Turkish authorities to ensure the safety of the editorial team. Terry Anderson, of Cartoonists Rights, said the arrests were 'based on a lie and are being exploited by political opportunists for intimidation and repression'. 'We demand the release of those detained and an immediate end to these baseless prosecutions,' he added. Many Turks and press organisations drew a parallel with the attack on LeMan and the Sivas massacre in 1993, when a radical Islamist mob set fire to a hotel, killing 33 writers and artists mainly from the Alevi minority. The protesters had been angered by the presence of the writer Aziz Nesin who had questioned the authenticity of the Quran and also sought to translate Salman Rushdie's controversial novel The Satanic Verses. — AFP
Al Arabiya
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Turkish cartoonist jailed pending trial over drawing accused of insulting Prophet
A Turkish court on Wednesday ordered the arrest of cartoonist Dogan Pehlevan and three others pending trial, after a drawing in their satirical magazine stirred outrage among religious conservatives and condemnation by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Pehlevan faces charges, which he denies, of inciting hatred and insulting the president, according to a court document. Justice Minster Yilmaz Tunc said the four had been arrested. The cartoon, published shortly after war ended between Israel and Iran, showed two elderly men named Mohammad and Moses shaking hands in the sky while missiles flew below — a scene critics said blasphemously referenced Muslim and Jewish prophets. On Tuesday, Erdogan called the Leman magazine cartoon a 'vile provocation' and vowed that 'those who show disrespect to our Prophet and other prophets will be held accountable before the law.' His AK Party called it an Islamophobic hate crime. In a court statement seen by Reuters, Pehlevan denied targeting religious figures, saying the names were commonly used and intended to represent ordinary victims of war. 'If I hadreferred the prophets, I would have used an expression like 'Prophet',' he said. 'The cartoon is a call for peace.' Pehlevan faces charges of 'inciting hatred and enmity' and 'insulting the president', the court document said. Three other Leman staff members — the managing editor, graphic designer, and administrative director — were also referred to court under similar charges. Leman has apologized to readers who felt offended and said the cartoon was misunderstood. It said Pehlevan sought to portray the suffering of civilians in wartime and that there was no intent to insult Islam.
Associated Press
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Turkey arrests 4 satirical magazine staff for inciting ‘public hatred' with cartoon
ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish authorities on Wednesday arrested four staff members of a satirical magazine on charges of inciting 'public hatred and enmity' over a controversial cartoon that officials claim depicts the Prophet Muhammad, Turkish state television reported. The cartoon, published in the weekly LeMan magazine, sparked a backlash from government officials and religious groups, culminating in protests outside the magazine's Istanbul offices. Authorities claim that the cartoon violates laws against provoking hostility and social divisions. The magazine denies the allegations. In a statement, LeMan said the illustration portrays a Muslim named Muhammad, not the Prophet, and was intended to highlight the suffering of Muslims during armed conflict. On Wednesday, a court in Istanbul ordered four staff — LeMan's cartoonist Dogan Pehlevan, Editor-in-Chief Zafer Aknar, graphic designer Cebrail Okcu, and manager Ali Yavuz — be detained in custody pending a trial, TRT television reported. Authorities have also issued warrants for two editors believed to be abroad, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. Footage released by the Interior Ministry earlier this week showed some of the detainees, including Pehlevan and Yavuz, being forcibly taken from their homes with their hands cuffed behind their backs. The pro-government Yeni Safak newspaper said the cartoon showed 'two figures alleged to be Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Moses — with wings and halos — shaking hands in the sky, while a war scene unfolds below with bombs raining down.' The independent Birgun newspaper said the winged figures hovering in the sky were interpreted by some as Prophets Muhammad and Moses. LeMan has apologized to readers for any offence caused by the cartoon, but maintains that the drawing was misinterpreted. It has also asked judicial authorities to defend freedom of expression and shield its staff from ongoing threats. The cartoon triggered protests outside the magazine's Istanbul office, with demonstrators — reportedly from an Islamist organization -- throwing rocks at the building. Tensions flared again Tuesday, with dozens staging a demonstration following noon prayers at a mosque in central Istanbul. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called the cartoon a 'clear provocation disguised as humor' and vowed that 'those who insult the Prophet and other messengers will be held accountable before the law.' Ozgur Ozel, the leader of Turkey's main opposition, however, expressed support to the magazine, stating that he does not consider the cartoon to be depicting the prophet. 'I see an angel who died in a bombardment in Gaza, with a halo and wings, who encounters another angel also killed by a bomb. They meet each other in the sky,' he said. Ozel added: 'I will not allow any disrespect to the Prophet Muhammad, but I won't remain silent toward a social lynching based on a non-existent disrespect.' The incident has reignited debate about press freedom in Turkey, which ranks 159th out of 180 countries in the 2025 Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index. Critics argue that laws intended to curb hate speech are increasingly being used to silence dissenting voices. __ Fraser reported from Ankara, Turkey.
