26/11/2007 (Agence Europe) - At the EU/Turkey ministerial troika last week (EUROPE 9547), the European Commission with responsibility for enlargement, Olli Rehn and the Turkish minister Ali Babacan discussed the case of Marco W., a young German, 17 years of age, who has been held for seven months at Antalya. Accused of having “sexually attacked” a 13-year-old British girl during her holiday in Turkey (which the German denies), he is still awaiting trial. The European Commission is following this case “very closely”, particularly to verify whether Turkish justice respects human rights and the principles of the rule of law, Mr Rehn told the Turkish daily Helsingin Sanomat of Saturday 24 November. However, the Commission has no wish to intervene further in this case. The Turkish government intends to speed up the trial process and to come to a conclusion rapidly; it would, therefore, be counter-productive to bring political pressure to bear, said Mr Rehn. The Assizes Court of Antalya decided last week to extend Marco W.'s incarceration, postponing the trial until 14 December. (H.B.)