Swedish journalist Joakim Medin has been detained in Turkey after arriving in Istanbul on 28 March to report on ongoing protests. His newspaper, Dagens ETC, reported that he was taken in for questioning by Turkish authorities shortly after his arrival. Since then, his whereabouts remain unknown.
According to Anadolu Agency, Medin was arrested as part of an investigation by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. He is facing charges of insulting the president and membership in a terrorist organisation. Turkish authorities have linked his case to a protest held in Stockholm in January 2023, during which a mock-up of Turkish President Erdoğan was displayed. Medin is reportedly being investigated for possible connections to individuals involved in that protest.
The Rojava Committees, a Swedish solidarity group for the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), condemned the accusations against Medin, calling them a “falsification” by the Turkish state. The group stated that Medin is not, and has never been, a member of the Rojava Committees. Their statement, issued on 29 March, rejected any link between Medin and their organisation.
Sweden’s Foreign Ministry has confirmed that it has established contact with Medin. Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard stated that the Swedish Consulate in Istanbul is in touch with Turkish authorities regarding the case. Dagens ETC has urged the Swedish government to take action to secure his release.
Medin is the third foreign journalist to be detained in Turkey in recent days. On 16 March, Chris den Hond, a journalist reporting for Medya News and the French media outlet Orient XXI, was briefly detained and then deported, receiving a 10-year ban from entering Turkey. Most recently, on 26 March, BBC journalist Mark Lowen was taken into custody and later deported for allegedly posing a threat to public order. In addition to these cases, at least 13 local and national journalists have been arrested while covering the recent protests.
