German-born Turkish journalist Deniz Yucel of the Di Welt newspaper has been released after a year in Turkish prisons without charge, following Turkish Prime Minister Binali Gildirim's visit to Berlin and his meeting with German Angela Merkel.
The news came to light through a tweet from the journalist's lawyer, which was confirmed by the German Foreign Ministry.
Representative of the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs
"There is no 'dirty deal' with Turkey behind this release."
It means that Germany did not accept the release of Ucel, in order to proceed with the export of defense equipment to Turkey.
The issue of Deniz Ucel was one of the top issues in recent Berlin-Ankara relations.