Turkish prosecutors are seeking sentences of up to seven and a half years in prison for 18 journalists they accuse of engaging in terror propaganda for publishing photos showing a militant pointing a gun at a prosecutor who was killed in a failed hostage rescue operation in March.

According to the Associated Press, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported late Tuesday, Aug 4, that an indictment prepared by the Istanbul chief prosecutor's office is demanding prison terms for editors of nine newspapers, including Can Dundar, editor-in-chief of the opposition Cumhuriyet newspaper. The indictment has yet to be approved by a court.

The photos showed militants of an outlawed leftist group pointing a gun at the prosecutor.

At the time, Turkey blocked access to social networking sites Twitter and YouTube for several hours over the photos.