Freed journalist arrives back in France

Freed journalist arrives back in France
By Catherine Hardy with AFP
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Loup Bureau says he is both relieved and surprised to have been freed on Friday.

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A French student journalist, held for more than a month in Turkey, has arrived back in France.

Loup Bureau says he is both relieved and surprised to have been freed on Friday.

The 27-year-old was met by his family and French Culture Minister Francoise Nyssen at Charles de Gaulle airport near Paris.

Le journalste Loup Bureau “très soulagé d‘être revenu” en France, et “très fatigué” https://t.co/XE48ZLDnaV#AFPpic.twitter.com/2M5f6TknXv

— Agence France-Presse (@afpfr) 17 septembre 2017

Why was he detained?

Officials in Turkey suspected him of belonging to a terrorist organisation.

He was arrested on 26th of July on the border between Turkey and Iraq.

He had photos in his possession showing him in the company of Syrian Kurd fighters.

Le journaliste Loup Bureau, détenu en Turquie, libéré https://t.co/SkzUoXpbbVpic.twitter.com/ffleA5hNpy

— Libération (@libe) 15 septembre 2017

Did the French authorities help him out?

Yes. The conditions of his detention were “difficult” at first, he says, but said “from the moment the President of the Republic openly called for me to be freed, things changed. The guards seemed to understand that I was not a terrorist.”

La libération du journaliste Loup #Bureau, juste après la visite de Jean Yves Le Drian favorise le partenariat essentiel voulu avec #Erdoganpic.twitter.com/usb2XD521Y

— Ulysse Paris (@ulyssepariser) 15 septembre 2017

France’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, spent two days in Ankara this week meeting with the Turkish authorities, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

However, according to Mr Bureau’s lawyer, Martin Pradel, the case has not been closed.

“He still faces terrorism-related charges but is free. The judicial process is still ongoing in Turkey”, he told reporters.

What the French government is saying

Je me réjouis de la remise en liberté de Loup Bureau. C’est un grand soulagement pour nous tous.

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) 15 septembre 2017

President Emmanuel Macron described Bureau’s return as a “great relief for us all” on Twitter.

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