A French journalist detained for covering a pro-Kurdish protest in İstanbul who was facing possible deportation has been released, he told Agence France-Presse on Wednesday.
Raphael Boukandoura, 35, who has lived legally in Turkey for at least a decade and has an official press card, was covering the protest for French Libération daily when he was arrested on Monday evening.
His lawyer, Emine Özhasar, confirmed his release, telling AFP they were still waiting to hear the details.
It was not immediately clear if the charges against him had been dropped.
She earlier said Boukandoura had been transferred to a detention center for migrants, facing possible deportation.
His arrest on Monday evening at a protest called by the pro-Kurdish opposition DEM Party sparked concern from rights groups and the French government.
The French foreign ministry said it hoped Boukandoura would be “freed as quickly as possible” in a statement sent to AFP on Tuesday.
Following with concern the case of @libe 🇨🇵 journalist Raphaël Boukandoura, detained on Monday in Istanbul while covering a protest & now facing deportation despite being based in 🇹🇷 since 2015! Independent journalism is really a hazardous job in #Türkiye for locals & foreigners.
— Nacho Sánchez Amor (@NachoSAmor) January 21, 2026
The European Parliament’s Turkey rapporteur Nacho Sanchez Amor also said he was following “with concern” the reporter’s case, especially the threat of deportation.
“Independent journalism is really a hazardous job in #Turkiye for locals & foreigners,” he wrote on X.
© Agence France-Presse