Turkish court rules for pundit Gürcan’s rearrest in espionage case

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Thursday objected to the release decision of security pundit Metin Gürcan. After the Ankara 27th High Criminal Court accepted the objection, a new arrest warrant was issued for Gürcan.

A court in the Turkish capital Ankara ruled Wednesday for the release of Gürcan, who was previously arrested over espionage charges.

Gürcan, who is among the founders of the Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA) led by former Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan, faces up to 35 years in prison for “political and military espionage.”

Detained on Nov. 29, 2021, as part of the investigation, the 46-year-old retired Turkish officer was being accused of transferring state secrets to foreign diplomats.

Gürcan had claimed innocence, saying his consultancy services were based on open or public sources, a view that was also echoed by Babacan.

Anadolu Agency (AA) reported that Gürcan’s lawyers told the court that official correspondence from public institutions put forward that the information passed on by Gürcan does not include secret or private information, and could affect the classification or nature of the attributed offense.

The Ankara 26th Heavy Penal Court then ruled for Gürcan’s release on judicial control and travel ban.

The prosecution had accused Gürcan of passing on classified information to foreign diplomats regarding issues ranging from Turkish military units abroad to Ankara’s activities in Syria and Libya, or positioning S-400 missile defense systems to field work for locating terrorist PKK ringleaders.

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