Bülent Keneş is a Turkish journalist, currently living in exile in Sweden and working with the

Stockholm Center for Freedom The Stockholm Center for Freedom (The SCF) is an advocacy organization founded in 2017 by the Turkish journalist Abdullah Bozkurt. The SCF has been headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden due to the Turkish government crackdown on freedom of the press ...

. He previously served as editor-in-chief of ''

Today's Zaman ''Today's Zaman'' (Zaman is Turkish for 'time' or 'age') was an English-language daily newspaper based in Turkey. Established on 17 January 2007, it was the English-language edition of the Turkish daily '' Zaman.'' ''Today's Zaman'' included dom ...

''.

Biography

Keneş earned a bachelor's degree in international relations from

Boğaziçi University Boğaziçi University (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Boğaziçi Üniversitesi''), also known as Bosphorus University, is a Public university, public research university in Istanbul, Turkey, historically tied to a former American educational insti ...

and a PhD from

Marmara University Marmara University (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Marmara Üniversitesi'') is a Public university, public research university in Istanbul, Turkey. The university, named after the Sea of Marmara, was founded as a university in 1982. However, its ...

. From 2005 to 2006, he served as editor-in-chief of ''

Bugün ''Bugün'' () was a Turkish daily newspaper. It was established in 2005. Columnists and journalists working for it have included Cengiz Çandar, Ahmet Almaz, Toktamış Ateş and Kamil Maman. ''Bugün'' was founded in January 2003 as ''Dünde ...

''. In 2007, he joined ''

'' as the newly-founded English-language newspaper's first editor-in-chief. In July 2014, Turkish Prime Minister

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...

filed a legal complaint against Keneş with the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, alleging that Keneş had targeted him with a smear campaign. On 9 October 2015, Keneş was arrested by Turkish police on charges of insulting Erdoğan, now President of Turkey, on Twitter. The

Committee to Protect Journalists The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in New York City, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journalists. The '' American Journalism ...

condemned the arrest as part of a "relentless crackdown on the press" in Turkey. Following the

2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt In the evening of 15 July 2016, a faction within the Turkish Armed Forces, organized as the Peace at Home Council, attempted a coup d'état against state institutions, including the government and president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. They attempted ...

, further arrest warrants were issued by Turkish authorities, targeting Keneş and 46 other ''Zaman'' employees. When announcing those arrest warrants, the Turkish government claimed that ''Zaman'' was the "flagship media organization" of the

Gülen movement The Gülen movement () or Hizmet movement () is an Islamist fraternal movement. It is a sub-sect of Sunni Islam based on a Nursian theological perspective as reflected in Fethullah Gülen's religious teachings. It is referred to by its membe ...

. Following Sweden's application for NATO membership in 2022, the Turkish government demanded the extradition of several dozen individuals living in Sweden, including Keneş. In December 2022, the

Supreme Court of Sweden The Supreme Court of Sweden (, HD) is the supreme court and the third and final instance in all civil and criminal cases in the Kingdom of Sweden. Before a case can be decided by the Supreme Court, leave to appeal must be obtained, and wit ...

blocked the extradition of Keneş, ruling that several of the Turkish charges against him were not crimes under Swedish law and that there was "a risk of persecution based on this person’s political beliefs."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keneş, Bulent Living people 21st-century Turkish journalists Boğaziçi University alumni Fugitives wanted by Turkey Turkish exiles Turkish journalists Turkish newspaper editors Sweden–NATO relations Year of birth missing (living people) Turkish expatriates in Sweden Marmara University alumni

Biography

See also

References