A Turkish court has handed down a suspended seven-and-a-half-month sentence to a woman for criticizing a government ban on Instagram.
Dilruba Kayserilioğlu was initially detained for 18 days after criticizing a government-imposed Instagram ban in a street interview.
The Instagram ban, which was enforced from August 2 to August 10, affected millions of users across Turkey. It was implemented after government officials accused the platform of censoring content related to Palestinian militant group Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh.
During her trial on Tuesday, the prosecutor reiterated the charge of “inciting hatred and enmity,” which could have led to up to more than four years in prison. The judge ultimately found her guilty of insulting the public but acquitted her of the more serious charge of incitement.
Kayserilioğlu was given a suspended sentence, meaning she will not serve time if she remains free of any criminal offenses for the next five years.
The case has drawn criticism from human rights advocates, who view it as part of a broader crackdown on free expression in Turkey.