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Turkish police fire tear gas at newspaper, EU officials lament press record
Source: Reuters
World | Sat Mar 5, 2016 9:57am EST
Turkish police fire tear gas at newspaper, EU officials lament press record
ISTANBUL | BY AYLA JEAN YACKLEY
Turkish police fired tear gas and rubber bullets on Saturday to disperse protesters outside the country's biggest newspaper after authorities seized control of it in a crackdown on a religious group whose leader the government accuses of treason.
A court on Friday appointed an administrator to run the flagship Zaman, English-language Today's Zaman and Cihan agency, linked to U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen who the government says plotted a coup. The ruling came at the request of a prosecutor probing Gulen on terrorism charges, state media said.
Rights groups and European officials condemned the takeover, seeing it as proof the government silences dissident views. Other media outlets affiliated with Gulen's movement were seized in October, and companies, including a bank, have been confiscated, wiping out billions of dollars in valuations.
"Extremely worried about latest developments on Zaman newspaper which jeopardizes progress made by Turkey in other areas," European Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn said on Twitter. "We will continue to monitor this case closely. Turkey, as a candidate country, needs to respect freedom of the media."
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Turkish police fire tear gas at newspaper, EU officials lament press record
ISTANBUL | BY AYLA JEAN YACKLEY
Turkish police fired tear gas and rubber bullets on Saturday to disperse protesters outside the country's biggest newspaper after authorities seized control of it in a crackdown on a religious group whose leader the government accuses of treason.
A court on Friday appointed an administrator to run the flagship Zaman, English-language Today's Zaman and Cihan agency, linked to U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen who the government says plotted a coup. The ruling came at the request of a prosecutor probing Gulen on terrorism charges, state media said.
Rights groups and European officials condemned the takeover, seeing it as proof the government silences dissident views. Other media outlets affiliated with Gulen's movement were seized in October, and companies, including a bank, have been confiscated, wiping out billions of dollars in valuations.
"Extremely worried about latest developments on Zaman newspaper which jeopardizes progress made by Turkey in other areas," European Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn said on Twitter. "We will continue to monitor this case closely. Turkey, as a candidate country, needs to respect freedom of the media."
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-media-idUSKCN0W70IN
LBN thread: Zaman newspaper: Defiant last edition as Turkey police raid
