Magazine Staff Arrested in Turkey

An Istanbul court arrested Kaan Ünsal, a leftist magazine staff, for being an illegal organization member.

On March 14, police raided several apartments in Istanbul, detaining 13 individuals suspected of being a leftist DHKP-C organization member.

While the prosecutor charged Ünsal with being an "illegal organization leader", Sevinç Bozdağ, another March 14 detainee, was charged with being an illegal organization member.

"There are rumors that my client [Ünsal] had been a fugitive prior to his detention. He was jailed for long and only released last year. He wasn't hiding anywhere," Aycan Çiçek, Ünsal's defense attorney, told bianet.

Following the March 14 detentions, Cihan News Agency claimed Ünsal to be a an illegal organization leader and fugitive.

In December 2010, Ünsal was arrested for being an illegal organization member and released pending trial on the third hearing. (EA/BM)