Turkey frees German jailed for 'political reasons'
November 3, 2017
The German Foreign Ministry announced on Friday that authorities in Turkey released another German national from jail.
Spokesman Rainer Breul said that the person had been held for "political reasons" and that he or she is not permitted to leave Turkey at this time.
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The freed detainee asked authorities not to release his or her identity, but the foreign ministry spokesman said that he or she had been released on October 22.
Breul noted that nine other German citizens are still in custody in Turkey. The only detainees who have been named are Die Welt newspaper correspondent Deniz Yücel and journalist Mesale Tolu.
German-Turkish relations have declined sharply in the aftermath of a failed coup attempt in July 2016 against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that saw a wave of arrests.
Read more: Can Merkel push the EU toward a new Turkey policy?
Last week, Turkey released human rights activist Peter Steudtner and seven other activists pending a verdict in their trial for allegedly supporting a terrorist organization. Steudtner has since returned to Germany.
rs/rt (AP, AFP, dpa)