Press freedom continues to be under attack, as recent incidents in Turkey and the Kurdistan region of Iraq highlight the dangers faced by journalists. One journalist was killed in a drone strike allegedly carried out by Turkey, while three others were detained in Turkey simply for reporting the news.
Journalist Killed in Suspected Turkish Drone Strike
Journalist Aziz Köylüoğlu was killed in a drone strike targeting Ranya, a town in the Sulaymaniyah province of Iraq’s Kurdistan region. Local sources reported that the attack was carried out by a Turkish armed drone (SİHA).
Köylüoğlu, born in 1976 in Diyarbakır, Turkey, had been working as a journalist since the early 2000s. His death adds to the growing list of media personnel targeted in conflict zones.
This is not the first time journalists have been killed by drone strikes. On December 19, 2024, another Turkish drone attack in northeastern Syria killed two journalists, Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin, during clashes between the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Following that attack, seven journalists were arrested for protesting the killings.
Three Journalists Arrested in Turkey for Reporting on a Public Visit
Meanwhile, in Turkey, three journalists from the independent newspaper BirGün were detained for covering a high-profile visit between a pro-government journalist and a controversial prosecutor.
The arrested journalists are:
• Uğur Koç (BirGün’s online publishing coordinator)
• Berkant Gültekin (BirGün’s online publishing coordinator)
• Yaşar Gökdemir (Editor-in-chief of BirGün’s website)
Their crime? Reporting that Abdurrahman Şimşek, the news coordinator of pro-government newspaper Sabah, visited Istanbul’s Chief Public Prosecutor Akın Gürlek—a figure the opposition has criticized for his judicial decisions.
Ironically, Sabah itself had also reported on the visit, making the arrests even more controversial. The journalists were taken to Istanbul Police Headquarters on Vatan Avenue for questioning.
A Growing Threat to Press Freedom
These two incidents highlight the increasing dangers for journalists in Turkey and the wider region. The killing of journalists in drone strikes and the arrest of reporters for covering public events both point to a shrinking space for press freedom.
From war zones to newsrooms, journalists face mounting risks simply for doing their jobs—reporting the truth.
