Asian stock markets close mixed

Gül, Dündar Case combined With Lawsuit Against CHP Deputy Berberoğlu

Click to read the article in Turkish

The hearing of the trial brought against the Cumhuriyet daily’s Ankara Representative Erdem Gül and its former Editor-in-Chief Can Dündar was held yesterday (September 21) before İstanbul 14th High Criminal Court.

Erdem Gül was present at the hearing yet Can Dündar, who has stated that he would be in Germany until the State of Emergency was lifted, did not attend.

The court had decided to hold the trial in secret before the hearing began.  

The Prosecutor has demanded that Gül and Dündar’s trial be combined with the case of Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy and former journalist Enis Berberoğlu. The court, recognizing the claim, has combined both cases and postponed the hearing to November 16.

Charges were brought against CHP İstanbul Deputy Enis Berberoğlu for providing footage of the MİT trucks to Can Dündar and therefore having committed the crimes of “Providing confidential information and documents of the state for military and political spying purposes,” as well as knowingly and willfully aiding the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization –  Parallel State Organization (FETÖ-PDY). The bill of indictment demanding up to 30 years in prison for Berberoğlu was accepted by the court.   

The journalists Dündar and Gül are being tried on charges of “knowingly and willfully aiding an armed terrorist organization as non-members”. The charges are grounded on the journalists’ reports on the Trucks of National Intelligence Agency (MİT), which were carrying howitzers, shells and bullets hidden under drug containers.

In January 2014, it had been reported that there were weapons and ammunition in the trucks, which were pulled up in Adana and Hatay while transporting materials from Turkey to Syria, yet the Government and intelligence sources had claimed that the trucks were carrying humanitarian aid materials for the Turkmen. (EA/NV/DG)

167 Academics, 6 Administrative Staff Suspended at 7 Universities

Click to read the article in Turkish

According to the news, 167 academics and six administrative staff at seven universities have been suspended.

157 academics and six administrative staff have been suspended upon the investigation launched into the “parallel state formation”, and 10 academics have been suspended upon the investigation for signing the declaration entitled “We won’t be a party to this crime.”

The Council of Higher Education (YÖK) announced that the rectors of Dicle, Yıldız Technical and Yalova Universities also have been suspended.

Sakarya University: 11 academics have been suspended.

Düzce University: Nine academics have been suspended.

Abant İzzet Baysal University: 30 academics and four administrative staff.

Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University: Six academics including the former rector of university Sedat Laçiner have been suspended.

Van Yüzüncü Yıl University: 17 academics have been suspended.

İstanbul University: 95 academics have been suspended.

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan University: Nine academics and two administrative staff have been suspended. (BK/UA)

Turkish stocks end week 0.17% down

Turkey’s benchmark stock index ended the week down 0.17% to close at 88,533.40 points on Friday.After starting the last business day of the week at 89,480.41 points, Borsa Istanbul’s BIST 100 index fell 152.48 points from 88,685.88 points at Thursday’s…