Turkish authorities raid and take over pro-opposition news channel

Summarised from 2 outlets · 3 reports · Updated 14 Oct, 17:20 · Archive

Turkish police raided Halk TV, Turkey's most-watched news channel, halting broadcasts and appointing a government trustee.

Turkish police raided Halk TV, the country's most-watched news channel, on Wednesday morning. Broadcasts were halted and a government-appointed trustee was installed to run the broadcaster and other companies owned by its chairman, Cafer Mahiroglu.

Prosecutors said they had issued a warrant for 17 people as part of an investigation into Mahiroglu on suspicion of bribery, tender-rigging and money laundering. Eleven people were detained, of whom seven were members of Mahiroglu's family. Four other people named in the warrant were abroad, one was in a correctional facility, and one remained at large. Mahiroglu himself, who lives abroad, was not detained.

Mahiroglu condemned the raid as 'a dark day for Turkey' and described the allegations against him as baseless, saying the authorities were using the judiciary as a weapon against him. He stated that 'the public's right to information is being seized for political reasons'. Opposition parties and press freedom groups joined him in criticising the move as part of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's campaign to suppress pro-opposition media. The raid came two weeks after authorities shut down the website and social media accounts of T24, a leading digital news outlet.

How it is being reported

• Turkey: Government raids, takes over top news channelTurkish authorities have raided the Istanbul offices of Halk TV, halting broadcasts, appointing a trustee and opening an investigation. It is the latest chapter of a decadeslong media capture by President Erdogan.DW News · 14 Oct, 17:07
• 'Dark day for Turkey': Govt takes control of most-watched news channelPolice raided Turkey's most-watched news channel, Halk TV, early Wednesday, halting broadcasts and installing a government-appointed administrator in the latest move against pro-opposition media. Halk TV chairman Cafer Mahiroglu condemned the move against the broadcaster's Istanbul headquarters as "a dark day for Turkey", and criticism poured in from the opposition and rights groups.France 24 · 14 Oct, 14:47
• ‘Dark day for Turkey’: Pro-opposition TV channel boss slams police raid, broadcast haltTurkish authorities appointed a government trustee to run popular broadcaster Halk TV on Wednesday after police raided its headquarters, halting live broadcasts and arresting 11 people. Halk chairman Cafer Mahirogluin denounced "a dark day for Turkey", adding that seven of his family members were among those detained.France 24 · 14 Oct, 10:09

In this story: Halk TV · Cafer Mahiroglu · Recep Tayyip Erdogan · Turkey · Istanbul · New Party

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem