Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Diplomacy or Submission? The Zionist Grip on US Political Power and Trump’s Uneasy Alliance With Netanyahu

2 days ago

Fresno Suspect Caught After Jumping Out of Second-Floor Window, 2 Others Arrested

2 days ago

Tesla Has Applied to Arizona for Robotaxi Service Certification, State Transport Department Says

2 days ago

Evacuations Ongoing as San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Scorches Tens of Thousands of Acres

2 days ago

US Senate to Vote on Trump Aid, Broadcasting Cuts as Deadline Looms

2 days ago

US Health Department Widens Immigrant Benefit Restrictions

3 days ago

Fresno Police Arrest Suspect in Stabbing That Left Man Critically Injured

3 days ago

Madera County Authorities Seek Next of Kin for North Fork Man

3 days ago

Froot Loops Maker WK Kellogg Agrees to $3.1 Billion Deal From Italy’s Ferrero

3 days ago

China Signals Willingness to Sell Fighter Jets as Iran Eyes J-10 Aircraft

3 days ago
Pop Singer Convicted Over Joke About Turkey's Religious Schools
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 2 years ago on
May 3, 2023

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

A court in Istanbul on Wednesday handed Turkish pop singer Gulsen a 10-month suspended sentence after convicting her of “inciting hatred and enmity” over a joke about Turkey’s religious schools, the country’s state-run news agency reported.

The singer-songwriter was briefly jailed last year for the joke she made during a concert, when she quipped that the “perversion” of one of her musicians came from attending a religious school.

The 46-year-old singer, whose full name is Gulsen Colakoglu, was jailed for five days and later spent 15 days under house arrest despite having apologized for any offense she caused religious school graduates.

The court on Wednesday found her guilty of the charge and initially sentenced her to one year in prison, Anadolu Agency reported. The court later reduced the sentence, citing her “respectful stance” during the trial. Gulsen will face prison if she reoffends within the next five years.

There was no immediate comment from the singer.

Gulsen had vehemently rejected accusations that she aimed to “incite hatred” insisting that her comment “was a joke between two people.”

She had told the court in her defense that she had teased a band member who was nicknamed “Imam” but had not attended a religious school.

On Wednesday, lawyer Ziya Ilker Goktas reiterated that the comment was a joke and requested her acquittal insisting “there was no crime.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and many members of his Islam-based ruling party are graduates of religious schools, called Imam Hatip, which were originally established to train imams.

Turkey’s penal code criminalizes incitement of hatred and enmity against different groups in society based on class, race, religion or sect, requiring a prison sentence in cases that lead to threats against public safety.

Gulsen was previously a target in Islamic circles for her revealing stage outfits and for unfurling an LGBTQ flag at a concert.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

US Online Spending Surges $24.1 Billion as Steep Discounts Boost Sales, Adobe Says

DON'T MISS

Trump Threatens to Revoke Rosie O’Donnell’s US Citizenship

DON'T MISS

Trump Intensifies Trade War With Threat of 30% Tariffs on EU, Mexico

DON'T MISS

Trump’s Attorney General Drops Fraud Case Tied to COVID Vaccinations

DON'T MISS

Homeland Security’s Noem Says in Talks With Five Republican-Led States to Build Detention Site

DON'T MISS

Clovis Police Say Teen Changed Clothes, Hid After Reckless Riding Pursuit

DON'T MISS

Gaza Truce Talks Faltering Over Withdrawal, 17 Reported Killed in Latest Shooting Near Aid

DON'T MISS

Fresno Dog Left Behind After Owners Die Months Apart, Now Needs a Home

DON'T MISS

Frazier Defends $894K Pay as Nonprofit Loses $1.1M, Blames City for Financial Struggles

DON'T MISS

Key Events in the Air India Crash Investigation

UP NEXT

Gaza Truce Talks Faltering Over Withdrawal, 17 Reported Killed in Latest Shooting Near Aid

UP NEXT

Key Events in the Air India Crash Investigation

UP NEXT

‘There Are No Red Lines Anymore’ Says UN Palestinian Rights Expert on US Sanctions

UP NEXT

Oil Rises Over 2% as Investors Weigh Market Outlook, Tariffs, Sanctions

UP NEXT

Trump Threatens Higher Tariffs on Canada in the Middle of Trade Talks

UP NEXT

Israeli “Humanitarian City” Plan in Gaza Sparks Outcry, Accusations of Creating Concentration Camps

UP NEXT

US Singer Chris Brown Pleads Not Guilty to Lesser Assault Charge in UK Court

UP NEXT

Senate Panel Approves $500 Million Aid for Ukraine in Defense Bill

UP NEXT

UN Reports 798 Deaths Near Gaza Aid Hubs in Six Weeks

UP NEXT

Diplomacy or Submission? The Zionist Grip on US Political Power and Trump’s Uneasy Alliance With Netanyahu

Trump’s Attorney General Drops Fraud Case Tied to COVID Vaccinations

10 hours ago

Homeland Security’s Noem Says in Talks With Five Republican-Led States to Build Detention Site

10 hours ago

Clovis Police Say Teen Changed Clothes, Hid After Reckless Riding Pursuit

10 hours ago

Gaza Truce Talks Faltering Over Withdrawal, 17 Reported Killed in Latest Shooting Near Aid

10 hours ago

Fresno Dog Left Behind After Owners Die Months Apart, Now Needs a Home

15 hours ago

Frazier Defends $894K Pay as Nonprofit Loses $1.1M, Blames City for Financial Struggles

1 day ago

Key Events in the Air India Crash Investigation

1 day ago

Fresno Police to Target Speeding in Saturday Traffic Operation

1 day ago

Tulare County Man Sentenced for Fatal DUI Crash That Took Mother, Daughter’s Lives

1 day ago

US Judge Grants Trump Admin Request to Scrap Biden-Era Medical Debt Rule

1 day ago

US Online Spending Surges $24.1 Billion as Steep Discounts Boost Sales, Adobe Says

Online spending soared $24.1 billion across U.S. retailers during the stretch from July 8 to 11 – dubbed “Black Friday in Summer”...

10 hours ago

Packages are transported on a conveyor belt at the Amazon warehouse on Prime Day, in Melville, New York, U.S., July 11, 2023. (Reuters File)
10 hours ago

US Online Spending Surges $24.1 Billion as Steep Discounts Boost Sales, Adobe Says

Presenter Rosie O'Donnell speaks on stage about Madonna during the 30th annual GLAAD awards ceremony in New York City, New York, U.S., May 4, 2019. (Reuters File)
10 hours ago

Trump Threatens to Revoke Rosie O’Donnell’s US Citizenship

U.S. President Donald Trump gestures to the U.S. flag flying on a new flagpole after stepping off Marine One returning from New Jersey at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 6, 2025. (Reuters/Ken Cedeno)
10 hours ago

Trump Intensifies Trade War With Threat of 30% Tariffs on EU, Mexico

Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks to the media in the Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington D.C., June 27, 2025. (Reuters File)
10 hours ago

Trump’s Attorney General Drops Fraud Case Tied to COVID Vaccinations

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference to discuss the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s "National Farm Security Action Plan", outside the USDA in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 8, 2025. (Reuters File)
10 hours ago

Homeland Security’s Noem Says in Talks With Five Republican-Led States to Build Detention Site

10 hours ago

Clovis Police Say Teen Changed Clothes, Hid After Reckless Riding Pursuit

A Palestinian man from the Katoo family, with his son, mourns beside the body of his other son, who was killed by Israeli fire while seeking aid near a distribution point in Rafah, according to medics, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, July 12, 2025. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
10 hours ago

Gaza Truce Talks Faltering Over Withdrawal, 17 Reported Killed in Latest Shooting Near Aid

After losing both of his owners, a 5-year-old cattle dog named Ozzy found a second chance at happiness thanks to a local rescue group and a loving foster home. (Mell's Mutts)
15 hours ago

Fresno Dog Left Behind After Owners Die Months Apart, Now Needs a Home

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend