Medin, an experienced foreign journalist working for the daily newspaper Dagens ETC, was detained in connection with his trip to report on large democracy protests in Istanbul on Thursday.
The Swede is formally accused of being a member of the Kurdish PKK, which is considered a terrorist organization, and of insulting Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to a statement from the presidential office.
"This arrest warrant has nothing to do with his journalistic work," it says there.
"Of course not"
ETC's editor-in-chief Andreas Gustavsson dismisses such accusations as pure fabrications. He emphasizes that Medin works as a journalist and that he "of course is not a member of the PKK or any other group".
In the Turkish dispatches, it is claimed that the Swedish journalist is "known for his anti-Turkish news".
Medin's wife, journalist Sofie Axelsson, tells Dagens Nyheter that he wrote to her that he was probably going to be "picked up" upon arrival in Istanbul. She has received information from the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs that her husband is doing well under the circumstances.
My husband has been detained by a country that is allied with Sweden. In this situation, the most important thing is that he gets to come home as soon as possible.
Points to doll action
Turkey links Joakim Medin to a demonstration that took place in Stockholm in January 2023, where a doll depicting President Erdogan was hanged outside the city hall. The protest was held by the Kurdish activist group Rojavakommittéerna, which has already announced that Medin was not part of the action and has never been a member.
Turkey reacted strongly to the doll action – at a time when the country was making tough demands on Sweden in an ongoing NATO process. They claim to have identified 15 suspects, including Joakim Medin, but it also appears that this includes people who reported on the incident or had contact with those involved.
No evidence has been presented to support a PKK connection.
Cracks down on protests
Turkish authorities have cracked down hard on widespread democracy protests in the country. They broke out after a likely challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – Istanbul's mayor Ekrem Imamoglu – was imprisoned on questionable grounds.
Turkey experts believe that Erdogan has recently laid the groundwork to be able to run for a new, fourth term as president, which will require an adjustment to the Turkish constitution.
