Over 1 million pilgrims benefit from golf cart service at Grand Mosque during Ramadan    Visitors welcomed with Eid initiative at Thee Ain Heritage Village in Al-Baha    Tebuk emir reviews rain response in Tayma    Saudi Arabia considers rent cap as part of major real estate reforms    Messi's bodyguard banned from touchline at Inter Miami games    Screen time in bed linked to insomnia, study finds    Le Pen vows to appeal political ban, calls verdict a 'denial of democracy'    Death toll from Myanmar earthquake rises to 2,719 as rescue efforts continue    Russia, Ukraine trade blame over new energy strikes    Putin orders Russia's largest military call-up in over a decade    Albania hosts MWL chief for Eid sermon at largest mosque in the Balkans    Haramain High-Speed Railway transports over 1.2 million passengers during Ramadan    Saudi Transport Authority says passengers can ride for free if taxi meters are off    Ministry of Education forms 425 community partnerships with SR653 million impact    Mexico bans junk food in schools to fight childhood obesity epidemic    Sweet sales surge ahead of Eid as Saudi chocolate imports top 123 million kg in 2024    Saudi creatives shine at Jeddah's Fawanees Nights with art, fashion, and storytelling    T1 CEO confirms Gumayusi's return for LCK Spring after lineup shakeup    100 Thieves claim Marvel Rivals Invitational NA crown as 2025 scene heats up    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Saudi Arabia hold Japan to goalless draw in Saitama to stay in World Cup hunt    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    King Salman prays for peace and stability for Palestinians in Ramadan message King reaffirms Saudi Arabia's commitment to serving the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims    Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan 'out of danger' after attack at home in Mumbai    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Turkey targets media after coup as Erdogan meets opposition
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 26 - 07 - 2016

Turkish authorities on Monday issued arrest warrants for over 40 journalists in a new phase of the controversial legal crackdown after the failed coup, as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was to host opposition party chiefs for an unprecedented meeting.
Over 13,000 people have been detained so far in a vast sweep in the wake of the July 15 coup bid, which the authorities blame on the reclusive US-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen.
Istanbul anti-terror prosecutors issued arrest warrants for 42 journalists as part of the investigation into the failed coup, the state-run Anadolu news agency said.
Among those targeted by the warrants were prominent journalist Nazli Ilicak who was fired from the pro-government Sabah daily in 2013 for criticising ministers caught up in a corruption scandal, it added.
There was no indication any of the journalists had been detained so far.
The government blamed the 2013 corruption scandal on Gulen, with some officials at the time calling it a coup bid aimed at ousting the president.
Erdogan's government had been under fire even before the failed putsch for restricting press freedoms in Turkey, accusations the authorities strongly deny.
In new raids on Monday, police detained some 40 suspects at the army's military academy on the European side of Istanbul, Anadolu reported.
A female fighter pilot detained over the plot, Kerime Kumas, has confessed to landing a helicopter with rebel soldiers on board on the pitch of Besiktas football stadium during the coup night but insisted she had no idea a putsch was in progress, the Dogan news agency said.
Amnesty International in London claimed it had "credible evidence" of the beating and torture of post-coup detainees but a Turkish official vehemently denied the accusations.
Turkey has undergone a seismic shift since the night of violence when renegade soldiers sought to topple Erdogan but were stopped by crowds of civilians and loyalist security forces. At least 270 people were killed on both sides.
The authorities have announced they will disband the 2,500-strong Presidential Guard, almost 300 of whose members have been detained.
The length of time suspects can be held in custody without charge has been extended from four days to one month under a state of emergency that has caused alarm in the EU.
Erdogan's government has also sacked thousands of teachers, professors and civil servants and closed schools and universities.
The government says the stringent measures are needed to clear out the influence of Gulen from Turkey's institutions, claiming that he has created a "parallel state" inside Turkey.
Gulen, 75, who lives in a compound in rural Pennsylvania and whose foundation runs a global network of schools, charities and media interests, has strongly denied the accusations.
Erdogan, whose Justice and Development Party (AKP) holds the majority in parliament, was to host the leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) Kemal Kilicdaroglu and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) chief Devlet Bahceli from 1100 GMT.
The talks at his presidential palace — the first such meeting during his term in office — comes after thousands of Turks of different political stripes massed in Istanbul on Sunday to denounce the coup in a rare show of unity.
However, in a sign that the harmony is not complete, the head of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas has not been invited.
But the fact the meeting is taking place at all signals a major turnaround in the polarised world of Turkish politics, in particular for Kilicdaroglu who had vowed never to set foot in Erdogan's new palace, which he had denounced as illegal.
The CHP had on Sunday called the mass rally in Istanbul's Taksim Square and, to signal a united stand against the coup plotters, the demonstration was also backed by Erdogan's AKP.
"No to the coup!" said the headline in the Hurriyet daily above a picture of many thousands filling the vast urban space.
Erdogan supporters late Sunday kept up a "vigil" for democracy ordered by the president by filling city squares across the country.
The president has told his supporters to remain in the streets until further notice, warning of the danger of another coup.
In the northwestern city of Edirne, star oil wrestler Recep Kara went directly from winning the country's most famous annual wrestling championship — where competitors do battle smeared in olive oil — to take part in the democracy vigil, Dogan said.


Clic here to read the story from its source.