Reporting on the protests held in front of Bakırköy Closed Women’s Prison for the hunger strikes that began in 2018 along with 11 members of the Peace Mothers Initiative, journalists İrfan Tunççelik and Ümit Turhan Coşkun were put on trial on charges of “violating the Law on Meetings and Demonstrations” and “committing crimes on behalf of the organization as a non-member”.

At the hearing of the trial held on February 24, 2022, the İstanbul 23rd High Criminal Court ruled that the security camera footage captured on the day of the incident should be requested, the international travel ban on the defendants should be lifted, the defendants should be exempted from attending the hearings and the seized digital materials of the journalists should be returned to them. The next hearing will be held on June 28 (February 24).

At the hearing held on June 28, 2022, the prosecutor requested that the copied digital materials be returned and the file be sent to the prosecutor’s office for the preparation of the final opinion as to the accusations. The court ruled that the digital materials should be added to the file and returned to the defendants and that the case file should be sent to the prosecutor’s office for the preparation of the final opinion as to the accusations. The next hearing will be held on October 25 (June 28).

At the hearing held on October 25, 2022, the court gave the prosecutor’s office time to prepare the final opinion as to the accusations. The next hearing will be held on February 7, 2023 (October 25).

At the hearing held on February 7, 2023, the court ruled that the original copies of the digital material should be returned to the lawyers. The next hearing will be held on May 8 (February 7).