"The procedure of Mathias Depardon's deportation is in progress. He's on a plane from Gaziantep (in the southeast) to Istanbul and should return to Paris tonight," Christophe Deloire, secretary-general of the Reporters Without Borders (RSF), told AFP.
The French presidency also confirmed the journalist's release.
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French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday asked his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan to ensure the journalist's return to France "as soon as possible."
The deportation comes a day after the 37-year-old journalist received a visit from his mother for the first time at the detention centre in Gaziantep.
Depardon was detained on May 8 while on assignment for National Geographic magazine in Hasankeyf in the southeastern Batman province. He has been held since then despite reports he would be deported.
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Two weeks after he was detained, Depardon went on hunger strike, stopping almost a week later when he learned that a consular visit would be allowed.
Depardon was accused of working without a press card, which was in the process of being renewed.
He was also detained over "propaganda for a terror group" -- a reference to outlawed Kurdish militants -- which could lead to a judicial investigation, according to Turkish authorities.
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