The Turkish government has issued permission to German Embassy officials in Turkey to visit jailed journalist Deniz Yücel, who works for the German Die Welt newspaper and has been kept in pre-trial detention in Turkey since Feb. 27, the Turkish version of the Deutsche Welle announced on Monday.
“The German government: The request of the German Embassy to meet with jailed journalist Deniz Yücel has been approved. The meeting is expected to take place tomorrow [on Tuesday],” announced Deutsche Welle.
Yücel, who was detained in Turkey on Feb. 14 as part of an investigation for publishing stories on the leaked emails of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s son-in-law and Energy Minister Berat Albayrak, was arrested by a court on Feb. 27 and sent to Silivri Prison in İstanbul.
Nationwide protests took place in Germany and other European countries after Yücel’s arrest, with demands made for his immediate release.
President Erdoğan accused Yücel of being a “German agent” and a “representative of the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party [PKK]” on many occasions.
The journalist is being accused of “disseminating the propaganda of a terrorist organization” and “inciting people to hatred and enmity.”