Enes Kanter Freedom Wanted with $500,000 Bounty: What Happened?

Outspoken former NBA athlete Enes Kanter Freedom is wanted with a $500,000 bounty on his former country's 2023 most-wanted terrorists list.

The ex-basketball star is known for amending his name in 2021 after becoming a United States citizen. The situation is also the first time that Turkey, Freedom's home country, has placed a published bounty on the heads of people included in the most-wanted list.

Enes Kanter Freedom's Bounty

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government is offering up to about $500,000 for helpful information that could lead to the capture of the former NBA star. Freedom said that he only found out about the bounty on his head one week ago.

The 30-year-old athlete said that the situation was made even more dangerous because, before the bounty, Turkish intelligence was after the people on the list. He noted that with a financial offer, more people would come after the ones on the list due to their bounties.

Freedom revealed that he was also looking to sue the NBA and that he is only waiting for the right time because he claims that the agency blackballed him for his public protests against China, as per the New York Post.

The former NBA star was known for his outspokenness during his 11 seasons with the basketball league. Among those that he criticized include the Turkish government's alleged human rights abuses.

Freedom called out President Erdogan for being a "dictator," stepped on a photograph of him during a protest, and even called him the "Hitler of our century." The athlete said that because of his platform, whenever he makes a statement, it is quickly spread everywhere, and he claims that the Turkish government hates it.

He added that Turkish authorities are already sick of the situation and have had enough and will do whatever they can to shut him up. Freedom's name appears on the Turkish Terror Wanted List alongside actual terrorists and fellow dissidents who were critical of Erdogan's regime, which is known for routinely defying international human rights law.

Crack Down on Dissidents

The most-wanted list also had the names of more than a dozen journalists, which is seen as a larger assault on the free press in the country. Turkey is known for the number of imprisoned journalists, which doubled in the past year. In response to the most-wanted list, Freedom said he now has "24/7" protection to ensure his safety, according to the Daily Beast.

In a statement, Freedom called out NBA commissioner Adam Silver for seemingly siding with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and turning a blind eye to human rights abuses and the treatment of Uyghur Muslims in the Asian country.

Freedom called the NBA the "No Boundaries Association," which he said gave free propaganda to a genocidal regime. The former NBA star's remarks came after reports that league owners allegedly have more than $10 billion invested in China and a video from the Washington Wizards showing Chinese Ambassador Qin Gang shooting several free throws, said Fox News.

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