The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined the undersigned media freedom, freedom of expression, journalists’ and human rights organisations express profound alarm at the recent wave of detentions and arrests of journalists and civil society representatives in Türkiye in the immediate lead-up to the NATO Summit in Ankara on 7-8 July. In the last two weeks, Turkish authorities have launched a coordinated crackdown on critical voices in the country, including independent media. In this period, the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) monitoring platform Mapping Media Freedom documented 11 journalists and media workers detained under vague or unjustified pretexts, many with…

Three journalists were detained in a new wave of countrywide police raids in Turkey ahead of the NATO summit, which begins today in the capital city Ankara. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their affiliates, DİSK Basın-İş, Türkiye Gazeteciler Sendikası (TGS), Türkiye Gazeteciler Cemiyeti (TGC), Gazeteciler Cemiyeti (GCD) and İzmir Gazeteciler Cemiyeti (IGC), in calling for the immediate release of the detained journalists. On 5 July, T24 journalist Buse Söğütlü, OdaTV journalist Ceren Erdoğdu and Nihaplus journalist and Bianet contributor Abbas Vural were detained in the second wave of pre-dawn police raids conducted in at least eight cities ahead of the NATO summit in Turkey. They…

On 3 July, the Belgian Competition Authority (Autorité belge de la Concurrence or ABC) conditionally authorised the takeover of the IPM media group – publisher of the daily newspapers “La Libre”, “La Dernière Heure” and “L’Avenir” – by the Rossel media group, publisher of the daily newspapers “Le Soir” and “Sudinfo”, paving the way for the creation of a monopoly on daily newspaper publishing in the French-speaking part of the country. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its affiliate, the Association of Professional Journalists (AJP), in calling on the publisher to inform, consult and negotiate the terms of the…

On 3 July, 2026, a forensic analysis by the Citizen Lab revealed that Stelios Kouloglou, former Member of the European Parliament and investigative journalist, was targeted and infected with Pegasus spyware, developed by NSO Group, on or around 21 October 2022, and again on 6 and 7 March 2023. At the time, Kouloglou was serving as a substitute Member of the Parliament’s Committee of Inquiry to investigate the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware (PEGA Committee). This revelation is especially alarming because of the specific institutional context in which the targeting occurred. A member of the very committee mandated…

The imprisonment of Yıldız Tar, a journalist who has worked for many years on human rights, LGBTI+ rights and freedom of expression, deepens concerns over the use of criminal investigations and pre-trial detention against journalists because of their professional work, in Turkey. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) are calling on the Turkish authorities to release Yıldız Tar immediately. Journalist Yıldız Tar, editor-in-chief of LGBTQ+ rights publication Kaos GL, was arrested on charges of “membership in a terrorist organization” after being detained on 23 June in pre-dawn police raids in Ankara, Turkey’s capital, ahead…

On 6 July, journalists and media workers at the AFP Istanbul bureau will go on strike after management refused to accept their demands for fair wages during collective bargaining negotiations. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) express solidarity with the striking journalists and their affiliate, Türkiye Gazeteciler Sendikası (TGS), and are calling on AFP to meet their demands. The fourth term of collective bargaining negotiations between AFP and TGS began in February 2026. During the negotiations, TGS presented two proposals to management. The first included a 32.4% wage increase, corresponding to the official inflation…