Turkey police raid magazine, arrest 2 for critical cover
Police forces in Turkey have raided offices of a magazine and arrested two editors over a cover saying that the election results would cause a civil war in Turkey.
Nokta news magazine said on Monday that police stormed its offices earlier in the day after Istanbul prosecutor’s office banned distribution of the magazine’s last edition.
The last edition’s cover featured Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and said November 2 is “the beginning of civil war.” This came after President Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) on Sunday won the election and regained its parliamentary majority which it had lost in a June election.
The magazine also said that its editor-in-chief Cevheri Güven and responsible manager and the representative of the owner Murat Çapan were arrested during the police raid.
This came as human rights groups and opponents of President Erdogan accuse him of trying to silence opposition media critical of Erdogan or government policies. Riot police raided the Ankara and Istanbul offices of two opposition TV stations late in October in the run-up to the poll.
Nokta was also raided two months ago for a mock selfie picture of smiling Erdogan with the coffin of a soldier. The picture referred to clashes between the government and Kurdish militants as well as Erdogan’s comments at the funeral of a soldier killed in clashes.
“How happy is his family and all his close relatives, because Ahmet has reached a very sacred place,” Erdogan said.
Also on Monday, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) slammed Turkey’s Sunday parliamentary vote, saying a media crackdown, violence and other security concerns have marred the election.
OSCE’s Ignacio Sanchez Amor said while people could “choose between genuine and strong political alternatives in this highly polarized election, the rapidly diminishing choice of media outlets, and restrictions on freedom of expression in general, impacted the process and remain serious concerns."
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