Turkish court orders release of cartoonist arrested for offending Erdogan on X

At a hearing yesterday in an Istanbul court, Pehlevan denied having an account on the platform.

“I’ve never had a Twitter account. As someone who writes and draws, I don’t feel the need to express myself on social media,” he told the court via video conference, MLSA said.

In July, Pehlevan was detained alongside three other people in another case, a case in which the satirical magazine LeMan, where he works, was accused of having published a caricature of Muhammad.

The magazine has always denied any link between the drawings of a character called Muhamed and the prophet Muhammad.

The other three employees were released. Last week, a court ordered Pehlevan’s release in the case to await trial, the next hearing of which is scheduled for May 5.