Die Welt reporter Deniz Yücel freed from Turkish prison

German journalist Deniz Yücel has been released from the Turkish prison where was imprisoned for more than a year.

A correspondent for Die Welt, Yücel was arrested last February in Istanbul on charges of propaganda and incitement of hatred. His detention contributed to increasingly strained relations between Germany and Turkey, and the German government had repeatedly called for his release.

Yücel’s lawyer, Veysel Ok, tweeted on Friday: “The court has finally decided to release my client.” He later posted a picture of Yücel leaving the prison alongside his wife.

“Like many, many others I am happy that Deniz Yücel could leave prison today … and I want to thank all those who made it possible,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters in Berlin on Friday.

Merkel thanked Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel for his efforts, saying the outcome showed that “discussions are perhaps not completely useless after all,” and said activists had played a crucial role in advocating for Yücel’s release.

The chancellor added that she had also called for the speedy resolution of similar cases against other journalists detained in Turkey when she met Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yldrm in Berlin earlier this week.

Press freedom has declined in Turkey since the attempted coup in July 2016. According to advocacy group Stockholm Center for Freedom, 245 journalists are currently in jail in Turkey, and an additional 140 face outstanding arrest warrants.

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