Max Zirngast, who has written critically about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was detained along with two Turkish citizens, the Austrian magazine re:volt told CNN via Twitter on Tuesday.
The Jacobin, another magazine Zirngast has contributed to, described his detainment as “an appalling abridgment of democratic rights.”
The Austrian Foreign Minigstry confirmed to CNN that an Austrian citizen had been detained in Ankara on Tuesday morning.
“Our embassy in Ankara is already in contact with the relatives and the Turkish authorities,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Thomas Schnoell told CNN. Further details could not be provided due to data protection concerns, Schnoell said.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNN.
Re:volt magazine first reported that Zirngast had been detained via Twitter.
“This morning at 5 o’clock our comrade and author Max Zirngast was arrested in Ankara along with other people by the anti-terror department,” the magazine wrote. “Allegation, of course: “Terror!!!” #Turkey is trying to silence all resistant voices. It will not succeed!”
Re:volt magazine said that there was a lack of reliable information regarding the detentions and that lawyers were seeking further details.
Zirngast has written widely about Turkey for left-wing magazines such as re:volt and Jacobin, often criticizing Erdogan.
According to his Jacobin profile, Zirngast has also studied philosophy and political science in both Vienna and Ankara.
Ismail Kuepeli, a historian and political scientist in Germany and an acquaintance of Zirngast, told CNN that Zirngast had been spending more time in Ankara in recent years and was aware of the risk of being arrested due to his vocal criticism of the government.
“Max speaks, he writes, he engages in civil society,” Kuepeli said. “None of that is terror-related.”
The charges against Yucel — who left Turkey after his release — still stand, and the state prosecutor is calling for him to be jailed for up to 18 years, Anadolu reported earlier this year.
CNN’s Gianluca Mezzofiore and Gul Tuysuz contributed to this report.
Source : Nbcnewyork