{"id":1629,"date":"2026-09-29T16:00:30","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T13:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/?p=1629"},"modified":"2026-09-29T16:05:50","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T13:05:50","slug":"comedian-deniz-goktas-handed-jail-term-and-released","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/comedian-deniz-goktas-handed-jail-term-and-released\/","title":{"rendered":"Comedian Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f handed jail term and released"},"content":{"rendered":"

CANAN CO\u015eKUN<\/strong><\/p>\n

The first hearing in the trial of imprisoned comedian Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f on charges of \u201cpublicly inciting the public to hatred and hostility,\u201d \u201cinsulting the president\u201d and \u201cpraising an offense or an offender\u201d over his stand-up show was held at at the 14th Istanbul Criminal Court of First Instance on 28 September 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

Due to the high turnout, the Istanbul 14th Criminal Court of First Instance held the hearing in the courtroom of the Istanbul 4th High Criminal Court. Strict security measures were in place around the courthouse and in the corridor leading to the courtroom prior to the hearing. Riot police armed with shields were stationed in the courthouse corridor. As the courtroom proved insufficient, the proceedings were broadcast via the judicial videoconferencing system (SEGB\u0130S) in another room.<\/span><\/p>\n

MPs from the TIP, the New Party and the DEM Party were also present at the courthouse to follow the hearing. The hearing, at which Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f was present in the courtroom, was also attended by a large number of bar association presidents, led by \u0130brahim Kabo\u011flu, President of the Istanbul Bar Association. The lawyer representing the plaintiff in the case, President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan, also attended the hearing.<\/span><\/p>\n

G\u00f6kta\u015f began his defense by stating that he had been brought from the \u00c7orlu Karatepe High-Security Prison, known as a \u201cwell-type\u201d facility. G\u00f6kta\u015f explained that since 3 July, he had spent his days in a cell with no access to sunlight and without being able to communicate with any other detainees or prisoners; he noted that, due to high-security requirements\u2014unlike in other prisons\u2014he had been allowed to speak to his family on the telephone for just 10 minutes a week.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pointing out that he had been in custody for 88 days because of four sentences he had uttered as a comedian during a stand-up performance at the Harbiye Cemil Topuzlu Open-Air Theatre, G\u00f6kta\u015f said he had been held in a high-security cell for 22 days per sentence. G\u00f6kta\u015f, who said he was proud to see that, as a comedian, his sentences carried such a powerful impact, added, \u201cBut as a citizen, I am saddened by my country\u2019s record on freedom of expression.\u201d Emphasizing that what had happened to him had strengthened his belief in his work, G\u00f6kta\u015f said, \u201cOnce I regain my freedom, I will carry on with even greater enthusiasm and self-confidence. My only concern is that this case might dampen the courage of those taking to the stage and lead them to practice more self-censorship.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

G\u00f6kta\u015f, who stated that he had recited the four sentences cited as grounds for his trial 197 times on stage prior to the video of the \u201c\u00d6l\u00fc Deniz\u201d (Dead Sea) performance, continued as follows:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI first staged the Dead Sea performance exactly as it is, using the same sentences, in Harbiye in October 2023. I staged it for the last time in June 2026, again in Harbiye. In other words, from the first performance to the last, I uttered these four sentences\u2014which form the basis of the case\u2014198 times, in front of more than 100,000 ticket-holding audience members across Turkey. Each time, they were met with laughter and applause. Thousands of people from all over Turkey did not see a single sentence that would warrant my imprisonment. The only complaint I heard during those three years was that people were struggling to get tickets. That, too, was due to tickets selling out quickly.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The C\u0130MER campaign<\/b><\/p>\n

G\u00f6kta\u015f, pointing out that the performance in question had been viewed and shared by millions of people within three days, and<\/span>\u00a0that programs had been broadcast and opinion pieces written about it, spoke of the smear campaign that began after it made the headlines, and said the following: \u201cThe first post I saw from this troll team was a \u2018dictator joke\u2019 shared by a high-follower troll account using the username \u2018\u015eamil Tayyar,\u2019 which became the subject of the charge of \u2018insulting the president.\u2019 They did not get the reaction they expected. On the second day, they tried to dampen the enthusiasm of those who had shared and embraced part of the \u0130mamo\u011flu joke. However, this too failed to elicit the reaction they were hoping for. Users, apparently from the same troll team, were pleading with their teammates: \u2018Let\u2019s focus on the religious parts!\u2019 and on the third day, they cut out the beginning and end of the joke in question, took it out of context, and shared it simultaneously from hundreds of accounts as \u2018a comedian who insults religious values,\u2019 launching a complaint campaign via C\u0130MER (Presidential Communication Center).\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Emphasizing that these reactions were not organic, G\u00f6kta\u015f explained that false reports had subsequently been circulated claiming he had fled abroad, and said, \u201cOn 22 June, I paid the conscription fee \u2013 nearly half a million Turkish Lira \u2013 to fulfill my military service obligation in 2027. I have never had any plans to live outside Turkey.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Explaining that he visits friends abroad as soon as his tour ends each year, G\u00f6kta\u015f continued, \u201cAt the moment, we can divide people aged between 20 and 35 into three categories. Those who have moved abroad, those trying to move abroad, and those trying to dissuade them from leaving so they will not be left alone in Turkey. I am in the third category. All my close friends have emigrated because they saw no future for themselves in Turkey. It was tragicomic to read the \u2018he has fled abroad\u2019 headlines alongside my friends, whom I had been trying to persuade to return to Turkey.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was surprised even the police wanted to leave\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

\u00a0G\u00f6kta\u015f, who stated that he cut his holiday short and returned to the country after an investigation was launched against him, described what happened at the airport as follows: \u201cAfter getting off the plane, I went to the airport passport control and said, \u2018There might be an arrest warrant out for me.\u2019 We checked together and waited. An officer came to collect me, and we walked together to the airport police station. Whilst there, I greeted people at the airport who recognized me and wished them a safe journey. I was not taken by the arm, nor was I handcuffed. The officers at the station were surprised. \u2018Deniz, why did you come back? Are you mad? If I were you, I would never come back,\u2019 they said. <\/span>We waited, laughing and joking, for the inspector. I was surprised that even the police wanted to leave the country.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

G\u00f6kta\u015f explained that, despite turning himself in, the police had wanted to handcuff him; he said they gave up because he did not consent to it. G\u00f6kta\u015f reported that, a short while later, an inspector from the Vatan Security Branch arrived and ordered him to be handcuffed again, noting that he was forcibly handcuffed behind his back. G\u00f6kta\u015f explained that videos of him being handcuffed with his hands behind his back from the front, back and side were filmed at the Istanbul Police Headquarters, adding that in all of them he raised his head and smiled at the camera. He explained that this was why a video taken from a distance and from behind had been published. G\u00f6kta\u015f stated that the police officers there had also asked him why he had returned to the country, adding that these officers, too, were dreaming of leaving Turkey.<\/span><\/p>\n

G\u00f6kta\u015f said that whilst in custody, he was taken to the forensic medicine department, where samples of his blood, urine, hair and fingernails were taken; he noted that, despite 88 days having passed, they still did not know the results of these tests.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was forced to meet with K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

G\u00f6kta\u015f explained that when he was brought from the police station to the courthouse, he had to explain his jokes to the prosecutor, who had not seen his performance. He went on to describe the background to being brought to meet Kemal K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu whilst waiting in the courthouse corridor after his interrogation by the prosecution. G\u00f6kta\u015f stated the following: \u201cDespite telling him three times, firmly and clearly, that I did not wish to meet him, the inspector forced me to meet with Kemal K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu. As if being handcuffed behind my back was not enough, I was also forced to meet with K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu before the hearing. K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu said, \u2018Why did you return from abroad? If I could, I would not stay here for a single minute.\u2019 Unfortunately, he was the only one who said that amongst all the people I spoke to throughout this process. I did not want to meet with him whilst I was in custody so that he would not use me for publicity. As it was forced upon me, I spoke firmly, clearly and negatively. They even denied the conversation that everyone witnessed. The officers asked, \u2018Why did you say let go of the CHP?\u2019 Whilst I could not even see my lawyers, why was I forced to meet Kemal K\u0131l\u0131\u00e7daro\u011flu at the courthouse with my hands in handcuffs? I am still wondering.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Explaining that he had been re-arrested due to another joke from the performance \u2013 which had been cited as grounds for his initial release followed by re-arrest whilst in prison \u2013 G\u00f6kta\u015f said, \u201cI feel both the relief of someone acquitted of all charges and the anxiety of someone who has been re-arrested.\u201d G\u00f6kta\u015f then spoke about the jokes that had become the subject of the charges, referring in the indictment to the Constitutional Court\u2019s rulings on freedom of expression and stating that, according to these, his words did not constitute a crime. Recalling that as a child he used to watch the sketches of Levent K\u0131rca and Ferhan \u015eensoy broadcast on television, G\u00f6kta\u015f said, \u201cIf they were to watch me now, they would find my words rather mild. The laws protecting freedom of expression haven\u2019t changed since those days, but right now a comedian is in prison. What has changed are the politicians who cannot take a joke and are too fragile.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Recalling that Fatma Bet\u00fcl Sayan Kaya, Deputy Chair of the AKP and a member of the Central Decision-Making and Executive Board (MKYK), had resigned due to her involvement in the funding crisis on the stock market, G\u00f6kta\u015f said, \u201cShe is not offering any self-criticism, but she herself is seeking a pardon from the higher-ups. This only happens in a country run by people with dictatorial tendencies.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey wanted me executed\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

Noting that there were 185 C\u0130MER complaints against him, G\u00f6kta\u015f said that most of the complaints were based on video clips from posts made by troll accounts. Stating that the complaints were not limited to videos, G\u00f6kta\u015f continued as follows: <\/span>\u201cI looked through the complaints one by one to understand the statements that had offended the complainants. One of the 185 complaints stated, \u2018He compares the Seljuk Empire to a salad.\u2019 There is no such allegation in the indictment; I do not understand why the prosecution included it. Another one stated, \u2018The individual\u2019s Instagram follower count drops by 100,000 and then rises by 200,000. It could be an external lobby doing this.\u2019 But there are two complaints that truly upset me, and I will quote them without any exaggeration. Two people from a section of the public whom I am alleged to have incited to hatred and hostility have called for my execution, saying, \u2018I want him to be deported or, if you are to deal with this matter, executed as soon as possible.\u2019 Another said, \u2018Let him be executed in a country where the death penalty exists; thank you.\u2019 The hatred within him is enough for the whole of the Middle East. He has taken hatred to a whole new level. You are a country without the death penalty, yet you have a comedian who deserves to be executed; in the other country, the death penalty exists, yet there is no criminal comedian. He is demanding the export of a comedian who deserves to be executed.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone who watched the \u2018diver\u2019 joke got it, but those who drew up the indictment did not. All right, you are suspicious of my intentions up to this point, but in the rest of the joke I am referring to Deniz Baykal, one of the symbolic figures of the headscarf ban. This point has been emphasized far too much. On social media, someone had said they would sue me over this joke. I do not know if he did, but I reckon he got the joke.\u201d <\/span>G\u00f6kta\u015f, who recounted that he first told the \u201cdiver\u201d joke in October 2023 and that a member of the audience came up to him and said, \u201cI knew you would not say \u2018ha\u0161ema\u2019,\u201d and added, \u201cTo interpret it that way is forced and shameful. This is the accusation that bothers me the most. The fact that this sentence has been included in the indictment is a great stroke of luck for me. Because I am making a criticism of the secular people, the accusation actually falls apart on its own.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

G\u00f6kta\u015f\u2019s lawyer, Sinan Metin Aslan, also pointed out that the elements of the charges against his client were not present and requested an acquittal and release. President Erdo\u011fan\u2019s lawyer, however, stated that his complaints remained and requested to join the case as co-plaintiff, which the court accepted. The prosecutor, presenting their final opinion on the case, requested that G\u00f6kta\u015f be sentenced in accordance with the indictment and released upon sentencing.<\/span><\/p>\n

The court sentenced G\u00f6kta\u015f to 7 months and 15 days in prison for the offense of \u201cpublicly denigrating religious values embraced by a section of the public\u201d and to 11 months and 20 days in prison for the offense of \u201cinsulting the president.\u201d <\/span>The court acquitted G\u00f6kta\u015f of the charge of \u201cpraising an offense or an offender,\u201d for which he had been re-arrested whilst in prison on the grounds of a joke he made about the Dalton Gang. Taking into account the time G\u00f6kta\u015f had spent in prison, the court ordered his release, subject to an international travel ban.<\/span><\/p>\n

Background of the case<\/b><\/p>\n

An investigation was launched on 29 June against comedian Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f following the publication of his stand-up show titled \u201c\u00d6l\u00fc Deniz\u201d on YouTube. G\u00f6kta\u015f, who was taken into custody on 2 July upon his return from abroad, was arrested on charges of \u201cinsulting the president\u201d and \u201cinciting the public to hatred or hostility,\u201d and sent to \u00c7orlu Karatepe Prison. Although a decision was made to release him on 28 August, he was re-arrested before he could leave the prison, this time on charges of \u201cpraising an offense or an offender\u201d in relation to the same show; following the public prosecutor\u2019s office\u2019s appeal against the release decision.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the indictment dated 3 September 2026 filed by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office, it was alleged that the remarks made by G\u00f6kta\u015f regarding President Erdo\u011fan in his performance constituted insults; that the reference to a \u201cfasting suicide bomber,\u201d incited a section of the public to hatred and hostility; and that the statements regarding the Dalton gang constituted the crime of praising an offense or an offender.<\/span><\/p>\n

The indictment, which sought G\u00f6kta\u015f\u2019s conviction on three charges, was accepted by the Istanbul 14th Criminal Court of First Instance.<\/span><\/p>\n



<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Comedian Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f, who had been in custody for 88 days over his stand- up show has been sentenced to prison on two charges. The court also decided to release G\u00f6kta\u015f, subject to an international travel ban.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1630,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2753],"tags":[3125,3123,2797,3127,3124,3128,3126],"class_list":["post-1629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cases","tag-dead-sea","tag-deniz-goktas","tag-insulting-the-president","tag-jail-term","tag-olu-deniz","tag-released","tag-publicly-inciting-the-public-to-hatred-and-hostility"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1629"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1629\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1637,"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1629\/revisions\/1637"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1629"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/susma24.com\/en\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}