US prosecutor reportedly rejects appeal to extend Halkbank exec's sentence

The New York prosecutor's office has withdrawn an appeal to extend the sentence of a former executive at Turkey's state-owned lender Halkbank, the Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency said on Friday.

A U.S. court sentenced Hakan Atilla, an executive from Halkbank, to 32 months in prison in May for helping Iran evade U.S. sanctions in a case that has strained already tense ties between NATO allies Ankara and Washington.

Anadolu, without citing sources, said the prosecutor's office had been asked by the court to present details of its appeal by Dec. 6 but that the appeal had later been withdrawn.