Six Journalists Detained in Turkey While Covering Syria Border Protest

January 22, 2026 – Turkey/Syria –

Turkish authorities detained six journalists on January 21, 2026, in the Nusaybin district of Mardin province as they were reporting on a protest against a Syrian government offensive into Kurdish-held northeastern Syria near the Turkey–Syria border, according to press freedom monitors and local journalist associations. The detentions reflect growing pressure on the media in Turkey amid tensions surrounding the Kurdish issue and protests spilling over from neighbouring conflicts.

The journalists were taken into custody after police intervened to break up a march organised in solidarity with Kurdish groups in Syria. Those detained included Kesire Önel, co-chair of the Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG); Heval Önkol of Mezopotamya News Agency; Pelşin Çetinkaya from JIN News Agency; and reporters Ferhat Akıncı, Muhammet Ali Yılmaz and Barış Demircan. The group had been covering demonstrators who were planning to march toward the Syrian border when they were apprehended by security forces.

Their detention underscores ongoing constraints on press freedom in Turkey, where journalists covering politically sensitive issues — especially those related to Kurdish politics and cross-border conflict — have repeatedly faced legal harassment, short-term detentions, and broader reprisals. Independent monitoring shows that hundreds of journalists and media workers were detained, investigated, or prosecuted in Turkey in recent years, with local outlets reporting numerous short-term custody events tied to protest coverage and other contentious reporting.

The Nusaybin detentions occurred against the backdrop of renewed protest activity along the border linked to Syria’s offensive and expanded mobilisation by Kurdish-aligned political groups inside Turkey. Police interventions in these protests have at times resulted in broader crackdowns on demonstrators and journalists alike, raising concerns from press freedom advocates about limitations on media coverage and the safety of reporters in volatile situations.

In response to such arrests, both domestic press associations and international press freedom organisations have criticised Turkish authorities for detaining journalists while they were performing their professional duties, urging that accredited reporters be allowed to cover protests and political events without undue interference or intimidation. The situation highlights persistent challenges to independent journalism in Turkey, particularly when reporting intersects with politically sensitive subjects such as Kurdish rights and regional conflicts.

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Turkey detains 6 journalists covering Syria border protest