Turkish police raid opposition TV station Halk TV

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 14 Oct, 16:20 · Archive

Turkish police have raided the headquarters of opposition-aligned news channel Halk TV in Istanbul, halting its broadcasts.

Turkish police raided the Istanbul headquarters of opposition-aligned news channel Halk TV early on Wednesday, halting its live broadcasts. Journalists were initially unable to enter the building; a heavy police presence remained inside. The government appointed a new administrator to run the channel.

Financial crimes police searched the building. Prosecutors issued arrest warrants for 17 people as part of an investigation into the channel's chairman, Cafer Mahiroğlu, on allegations of bribery, bid rigging and money laundering. Eleven people were taken into custody. Mahiroğlu, who was reportedly not in the country during the raid, rejected the allegations on social media, saying the takeover was politically motivated, and reported that seven members of his family were among those detained.

Halk TV is known for critical coverage of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's government and is seen as close to the opposition Republican People's Party. The raid represents the latest in a series of crackdowns on news sources critical of Erdoğan. Opposition politicians and press freedom organisations, including Amnesty International, condemned the intervention and called for the broadcaster's independence to be restored.

How it is being reported

• Turkish police raid Halk TV in Istanbul, sparking outrage over media freedomPolice barricades surrounded the headquarters of Halk TV in Istanbul on Wednesday, 14 October, as Turkish authorities raided the independent broadcaster and appointed a trustee to take control of its operations.Euronews · 14 Oct, 15:59
• Turkey police raid opposition TV station, halting live broadcastsHalk TV says its staff are unable to enter the building in Istanbul, and a new manager was appointed to run the channel.BBC World · 14 Oct, 07:32

In this story: Cafer Mahiroğlu · Recep Tayyip Erdoğan · Halk TV · Republican People's Party · Istanbul · Turkey

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