Farhad Durdyev (Farhad Meimankuliyev)

Affiliated media: Blogger

Incident date: May 20, 2023

Attack type:

Ban on entering the country, denial or revocation of a visa / accreditation

Who attacked: Authorities

Location: Turkey, Ashgabad

Additional information:

Turkmen blogger Farhad Durdyev (real name Farhad Meimankuliyev), extradited from Turkey, has been sentenced to a long prison term. The exact term Durdyev was given is unknown. One source, a fellow villager of the blogger from the Garashsyzlyk district of the Lebap province, said that it was 22 years, another source mentioned 18 years. Durdyev’s relatives have no contact with him and do not know what he was charged with or when he was tried. On the evening of May 19, Durdyev arrived in Istanbul from Ankara and stayed at a friend’s flat. Almost immediately, police officers knocked on the door and showed Farhad’s photograph to his friend. He said there was no such person here. The policemen went round the other flats in the neighbourhood and then broke into the one they had originally seen. They detained Farhad, his brother, and the owner of the flat with his wife. The brother and the friend were later released, while Farhad and the woman were taken to a deportation centre.