In Turkey, an opposition figure was ordered to pay Erdogan compensation for defamation
Özgür Özel, one of the leaders of the Turkish opposition, was ordered to pay Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan a total of 800,000 Turkish lira in moral damages.
The ruling was based on statements and accusations made by the opposition politician against the head of state.
“Due to Özgür Özeli’s baseless accusations and offensive remarks directed at our president, the court ruled to order him to pay a total of 800,000 Turkish lira as compensation for moral damages,” the lawyer stated.
The decision was handed down by the 44th Civil Court of Ankara.
The court ordered compensation for several public speeches made by Özgür Özel in 2025.
Specifically, the opposition figure must pay 200,000 Turkish lira for his speech on August 13, 2025, following a visit to Marmara Prison.
The court also awarded an additional 300,000 lira in compensation for Ozel’s speech on the same day at the “Defend the Will of the People” rally, which took place in the Bayrampasa district of Istanbul.
In addition, the politician must pay 300,000 lira in compensation for remarks made during a rally on August 18, 2025, in Aydın.
Thus, the total amount of moral damages awarded to the President of Turkey is 800,000 Turkish lira.
The court’s decision concerns statements made by Özgür Özel, which, in the court’s assessment, caused moral harm to Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
This was reported by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s attorney, Hüseyin Aydın, on social media platform X.
As a reminder, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan previously stated that the country’s membership in the European Union is no longer a priority for Ankara.
During a phone call with the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that Ankara is making efforts to help ease tensions between Iran and the United States. According to him, these efforts also address similar conflicts and crises in the region.
