Dutch journalist arrested in Turkey

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Photo: Frederike Geerdink

A Dutch journalist Frederike Geerdink has been arrested by Turkish authorities on Tuesday morning. She is widely known to have covered Kurdish-related incidents in the country.

She tweeted from her personal account, “Terrorism police just search my house, team of [eight] guys. They take me to the station now. Charge: “Propaganda for terrorist organisation”.

The arrest prompted hundreds of Twitter users to demand her immediate release, including a response from the Foreign Minister of Holland.

Mark Verheihen, a Dutch MP called on the Foreign Minister of Holland, who is currently in Ankara to act following her arrest. In response he tweeted that he will personally discuss it with Turkey’s foreign Minister.

In 2014, Turkey was ranked 154 out of 180 on the World Press Freedom Index. The country has arbitrarily arrested hundreds of activists, journalists, writers and academics on affiliation with pro-Kurdish parties or organisations.

Geerdink has been reporting from Turkey since 2006.

Update

Shortly after she was released, Geerdink tweeted that she had not been arrested but brought in for questioning after a group of 8 police men from the terrorism squad searched her house:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to Reuters, the head of the bar association of Diyarbakir said that the probe was related to Geerdink’s tweets.