Turkish government seizes newspaper

World Today

Turkish government seizes newspaper

Police used tear gas to disperse demonstrators outside the headquarters of the Turkish daily “Zaman” newspaper on Saturday, a day after they stormed the building to enforce the court-ordered seizure of the publication.

The country’s largest-circulation newspaper is linked to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s top foe, U.S.-based opposition cleric Fethullah Gulen.  CCTV’s Michal Bardavid reports from Istanbul.

The move further reduced the number of opposition media organizations in the country, which is dominated by pro-government news outlets and where censorship is rife.

It raised alarm bells over the deterioration of rights conditions in the NATO member nation, which also aspires for EU membership.

The Istanbul court’s appointment of trustees to manage Zaman and its sister outlets comes days before a March 7th meeting, in which EU leaders will try to convince Turkey to do more to curtail the flow of migrants and refugees travelling to Europe and take back thousands who do not qualify for asylum.

Story by The Associated Press