- Sputnik International
World
Get the latest news from around the world, live coverage, off-beat stories, features and analysis.

Turkey Expansion of Journalist Arrests Reflects Post-Coup ‘Witch Hunt’

© REUTERS / Murad SezerA soldier protects himself from the mob after troops involved in the coup attempt surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey July 16, 2016
A soldier protects himself from the mob after troops involved in the coup attempt surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey July 16, 2016 - Sputnik International
Subscribe
Turkey is jailing people for simply criticizing the government or for expressing support for ideas of exiled Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, according to the report of the advocacy group Reporters without Borders (RSF).

Turkish journalists cover their mouths with black ribbons before the trial of Can Dundar, the editor-in-chief of opposition newspaper Cumhuriyet and Erdem Gul, the paper's Ankara representative, outside the courthouse in Istanbul, Friday, April 1, 2016. - Sputnik International
World
Int'l Journalist Federations Decry Attack on Democracy in Turkey Media Purge
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Turkey has more than doubled the number of journalists targeted for arrest in a widening crackdown following a failed military coup attempt earlier this month, the advocacy group Reporters without Borders (RSF) said in a press release on Wednesday.

The release titled, "RSF condemns ‘Witch Hunt’ against journalists," charges that Turkey is jailing people for simply criticizing the government or for expressing support for ideas of exiled Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen.

Turkey added the names of 47 journalists to a wanted list on Wednesday, in addition to 42 names published last week, the release explained.

Turkey Coup With Flag - Sputnik International
Turkey Orders Arrest of 47 Journalists in Post-Coup Attempt Purge
If Turkish authorities cannot produce more credible evidence, they are guilty of persecuting people for their opinions, the release said.

The crackdown is targeting people associated with the Gulen movement, an Islamic religious and social organization led by Gulen.

Since the failed coup, Turkey has jailed more than 10,000 people and suspended more than 50,000 judges, civil servants, and educators under a state of emergency in which expressing ideas similar to those of Gulen is considered a crime.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала