Foreign Office warns Turkey over British journalists arrested on terror charges

The British Government has increased pressure on Turkey over the arrest of two Vice journalists on terror charges.

The Foreign Office has reminded Turkish authorities of their duty to uphold human rights, saying it was "concerned" at the detention Jake Hanrahan and Philip Pendlebury who have been charged with assisting Islamic State.

The two men were held together with a Turkey-based colleague, Mohammed Ismael Rasool, while filming clashes between police and youth members of the pro-Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) last Thursday in the south-east city of Diyarbakir.

Vice News has described the charges against them as "baseless and false" and "attempt to intimidate and censor their coverage".

In a statement, a Foreign Office spokeswoman said that Britain expected Turkey to uphold its obligations to freedom of express under international agreements.

"Respect for freedom of expression and the right of media to operate without restriction are fundamental in any democratic society," the spokeswoman said.

"Turkey is a state party to the European Convention on Human Rights and UN Declaration of Human Rights. We would expect the Turkish authorities to uphold the obligations enshrined in those agreements."

A report on the Vice News website said that the three men had been transferred to a high-security "F-type" prison facility more than five hours away from where their legal representatives are based, and from the court where they are due to appear.