Durham, N.C. - The release of a Duke University graduate student from detention in Armenia was welcomed Wednesday by the university's president, Richard H. Brodhead.

The student, Yektan Turkyilmaz, was freed by a court in the Armenian capital of Yerevan on Tuesday after being held for two months on charges of trying to take books out of the country illegally. The court found him guilty but suspended his two-year prison sentence.

"We were pleased to hear the news that Yektan Turkyilmaz has been released from detention in Armenia and will be able to return soon to the United States," Brodhead said. "We look forward to welcoming him back to Duke University."

Turkyilmaz, a fourth-year Ph.D. student in cultural anthropology at Duke, was in Armenia carrying out research for his thesis on the conflict between Armenia and the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century. As his detention continued, a growing number of scholars and others around the world called for his release.

A more detailed report on the court's decision was published Wednesday morning by InsideHigherEd.com.