A Greek court today decided to release Sevan Nişanyan from detention, obligating the Turkish-Armenian writer and linguist to leave Greece within two weeks.

Nişanyan, who escaped from a Turkish prison in 2017 and took refuge in Greece, faced extradition to Turkey after Greek local authorities refused to extend Nishanyan's residency permit on December 29.

Nişanyan was later arrested on the grounds that his residence permit had expired and that he was in Greece illegally.

The Armenian Embassy in Greece issued a statement on January 2 that it had sent a representative to the prison where Nişanyan was being held.

Nişanyan, who has acquired Armenian citizenship, was arrested in Turkey in 2014 and sentenced to eleven years on charges of "illegal" construction in his garden in the village of Şirince, Izmir.

In a Facebook post today, Nişanyan wrote, “I have been released from custody after eight days in jail. Great thanks to everyone who sent their love and encouragement during these difficult days.”

Nişanyan was chastised by Turkish authorities in 2012 after he blogged that he had the right to criticize the Prophet Mohammed.

Nişanyan incensed many in Turkey in 1994 when he authored the book The Wrong Republic (Yanlış Cumhuriyet), a critique of the founding myths of the Republic of Turkey.