Freelance journalist Mir Ali Kosar was 200 miles from the epicenter when a deadly earthquake struck Turkey on February 6. Grabbing his camera and microphone, he went down to interview survivors in the affected area.
He shared the stories of survivors and rescuers on Twitter and is now under investigation for spreading “fake news” and could face up to three years in prison.
He is one of at least four journalists being investigated for reporting or commenting on the earthquake.
Press freedom groups say dozens more have been detained, harassed or prevented from reporting.
At least 50,000 people were killed by the earthquake in both Turkey and Syria.
Turkish authorities have not commented on the arrests.
‘I Couldn’t Hold My Tears’
On the night of the earthquake, Mr Kosar – who is Kurdish and contributes to pro-opposition news sites such as Bayonet and Dovar – was smoking a cigarette on his balcony in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, when his two dogs suddenly started barking.
He later remembered how he was barking in 2020 seconds before a small earthquake struck eastern Turkey.
“I felt like I was shaking. I felt like the house was shaking, I felt like the TV was shaking,” says Mr Kosar. He hid under the dining room table with the dogs and then ran outside.
Mr Kosar left Diyarbakir and drove to the city of Gaziantep. He was shocked to see the scenes of devastation in the towns near the epicenter and the freezing temperatures of the victims.
At least 3,000 of the earthquake victims died in Gaziantep.
“When holding the microphone, behind the camera or in front of the camera, I couldn’t hold back the tears,” Mr. Kosar recalls.
