Investigation launched against journalist who reported on a prostitution ring
An investigation has been launched against Mezopotamya News Agency (MA) reporter Zeynep Durgut for her report on a "prostitution ring" in Şırnak.
News Center - Journalist Zeynep Durgut for the Mezopotamya news agency (MA) continues to be targeted after publishing an investigative report on a forced prostitution ring in the Kurdish province of Şırnak.
The threats against Zeynep Durgut began after the publication of a detailed report in which she reported on a 25-member group that had come under investigation by the authorities in 2013 on charges of “establishing an organization for the purpose of engaging in and facilitating prostitution”. The suspects were accused of forced prostitution, human trafficking, and sexual exploitation of minors, among other things.
The investigation launched in 2013 against 25 suspects turned into a court case 11 years later. The indictment exposes a connection between three specialist sergeants and a non-commissioned officer and the “gang” that has forced women, including children and women from Rojava, into prostitution. It reveals that the women forced into prostitution were brought to the city by soldiers. Among those at the center of the investigation is Kenan Tatar, who, according to the indictment, is considered one of the group's leading figures.
After the publication of her news report on February 24, 2025, the journalist received threatening phone calls from relatives of Kenan Tatar.
“We know who you are, where you come from. There will be consequences,” Durgut claims to have been told in one of the calls. The journalist and her lawyer subsequently filed a criminal complaint with the public prosecutor's office in the district of Cizre.
Zeynep Durgut gave a statement at the Cizre Police Directorate’s Security Branch with her lawyer as part of an investigation launched following a complaint by Kenan Tatar and his brother, Nihat Tatar, in June.
The journalist, who testified on charges of “publicly disseminating misleading information,” stated that the news report was based on the indictment itself and was intended to inform the public. She emphasized the news report was accurate and did not contain misleading information.