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Turkish authorities have shut down the Istanbul office of Halk TV, a channel widely seen as opposition-aligned, and installed their own director at the outlet. On the morning of October 14, police searched the premises and issued arrest warrants for 17 people linked to the channel, which has stopped broadcasting, the BBC reported.
The operation was carried out by officers from the police unit that investigates financial crimes. Turkey's prosecutor's office said the searches are linked to a criminal case against Halk TV head Cafer Mahiroğlu, who is accused of corruption, bid rigging and money laundering. Other suspects connected to the channel are also named in the case.
Sources in the country say Mahiroğlu is currently outside Turkey. In a social media post, he said the channel belongs to the people and that the authorities have no right to seize the asset and place it under the control of «their own man."
Halk TV is considered close to the opposition Republican People's Party. The channel frequently and openly criticizes the policies of the Justice and Development Party, led by current President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The channel's website published reactions from leaders of other political groups. Opposition politician Buğra Kavuncu described the security forces' actions as a «raider takeover of a TV channel.» According to him, Turkey has reached the most dangerous point to which a «power-hungry regime» can lead a country.
The leadership of the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party also condemned the closure, urging Ankara to end its crackdown on the independent press. Party co-chair Tülay Hatimoğulları said that appointing a «trustee» to Halk TV is a blatant act of political interference aimed at suppressing opposition media.
«This mentality, which leads to the arrests of journalists, the blocking of websites and social media accounts, and the appointment of trustees to opposition channels, is plunging Turkey into darkness,» she wrote.
