Mathias Depardon is greeted by Christophe Deloire, Secretary General of Reporters Without Borders, at Charles De Gaulle airport in Paris, France, after his release June 9, 2017.
Mathias Depardon is greeted by Christophe Deloire, Secretary General of Reporters Without Borders, at Charles De Gaulle airport in Paris, France, after his release June 9, 2017.
William Daniels, National Geographic

Turkey Releases National Geographic Photographer Detained for a Month But Never Charged

Mathias Depardon was allowed to leave Turkey on Friday.

Published June 9, 2017
3 min read

French photographer Mathias Depardon, who was arrested in Turkey on May 8 while on assignment for National Geographic, was released on Friday and returned to France.

Depardon, 36, who has lived in Turkey for five years, was arrested while working in the district of Hasankeyf in the southeastern province of Batman, not far from Turkey’s border with Syria. Depardon was taking photographs for a National Geographic story about the effects on a historic town if a proposed dam were built nearby.

"Obviously I'm very relieved to be free," Depardon said by phone after he returned to France. "It's a weird feeling. You go from not seeing your laptop and phone for a month to getting out and speaking with the president [of

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