Turkish Police have arrested four staff members of the satirical magazine Leman over an alleged caricature of the Prophet Mohammed, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced late Monday.

Yerlikaya shared footage on X (formerly Twitter) showing the arrests of the magazine’s graphic designer, illustrator, editor-in-chief, and managing director, calling the cartoon “despicable.”

The videos showed officers restraining the suspects with cable ties and escorting them from the premises.

Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç said on X that Leman was under investigation for “publicly denigrating religious values.”

Leman denied the allegation, stating on X that the cartoon in question did not depict the Prophet Mohammed.

The arrests came after a protest outside the magazine’s Istanbul office in the Beyoğlu district on Monday evening, where demonstrators reportedly chanted “Long live Sharia” and damaged windows and doors, according to local media.

In response to the unrest, authorities imposed a one-day ban on public gatherings in Beyoğlu on Tuesday.

The Contemporary Lawyers Association (ÇHD) condemned the arrests, describing them as “torture” and accusing the government of using the incident as a pretext to silence dissent. NAN