ISTANBUL. – Istanbul’s General Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation against Chief Editor Rober Koptas of Istanbul’s Agos Armenian bilingual weekly, and writer Umit Kivanc, for criticizing the court ruling on the murder case of Hrant Dink—the founder and chief editor Agos, who was gunned down in 2007 in front of his office building.    

In a program on Haberturk television, and immediately after the issuing of this shameful verdict, Koptas and Kivanc commented on the ruling, Agos informs. But following this program, Antalya city resident Aydin Tasci petitioned to the prosecutor’s office and stated that he, as a Turk, cannot accept Koptas’ and Kivanc’s statement that, “the killer [of Dink] is the state.”        

Istanbul Deputy Chief Prosecutor Fikret Secen processed Tasci’s petition, decided that a respective investigation should be launched, and demanded the video of the aforesaid program. 

Agos’ attorney Hakan Bakircioglu, however, informed that the words by Rober Koptas and Unit Kivanc do not contain any crime, and therefore this investigation should not be of serious concern.