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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Photo: VALENTYN OGIRENKO / REUTERS
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has sharply rejected international criticism of the conviction of cultural promoter Osman Kavala.
The Turkish judiciary made the final decision regarding a person, which "some circles" bothered about, Erdoğan said in Istanbul without naming Kavala.
"No offense, there are laws and regulations in this country," he said.
Kavala was sentenced to life imprisonment by an Istanbul court on Monday in connection with the Gezi protests.
Seven other people, including well-known architect Mücella Yapici and lawyer Can Atalay, received 18 years for aiding and abetting.
Erdoğan again referred to Kavala as a "Turkish Soros".
In the past, President Kavala had already accused Kavala of having financed the Gezi protests with the help of US investor and philanthropist Georg Soros.
Erdoğan sees the anti-government demonstrations in 2013 as a foreign conspiracy.
The verdict had provoked sharp international criticism and sparked protests.
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz described it on Wednesday as a "devastating signal for Turkish civil society".
kim/dpa