Halk TV

Turkish authorities have raided the headquarters of one of the few TV news outlets not aligned with Turkey.

Broadcasts from Halk TV were halted on Wednesday as police searched the channel's Istanbul offices, arresting nearly a dozen people.

Authorities appointed a trustee manager to oversee the popular broadcaster.

Press freedom groups condemned the raid as a politically motivated move against the opposition.

Turkish authorities have raided the headquarters of one of the few TV news outlets not aligned with Turkey.

Broadcasts from Halk TV were halted on Wednesday as police searched the channel's Istanbul offices, arresting nearly a dozen people.

Authorities appointed a trustee manager to oversee the popular broadcaster.

Press freedom groups condemned the raid as a politically motivated move against the opposition.

Las autoridades turcas han allanado la sede cultural de uno de los pocos canales de televisión de Turquía que no están alineados con el gobierno.

Las transmisiones de Halk TV fueron suspendidas el miércoles, mientras la policía registraba las oficinas del canal en Estambul y arrestaba a casi una docena de personas.

Las autoridades turcas designaron a un administrador fiduciario para supervisar el popular medio de comunicación.

Organizaciones en defensa de la libertad de prensa condenaron el allanamiento por, según denunciaron, estar motivado por intereses políticos contra la oposición.

Turkish authorities have raided the headquarters of one of the few TV news outlets not aligned with Turkey.

Broadcasts from Halk TV were halted on Wednesday as police searched the channel's Istanbul offices, arresting nearly a dozen people.

Authorities appointed a trustee manager to oversee the popular broadcaster.

Press freedom groups condemned the raid as a politically motivated move against the opposition.

In Turkey, the space for dissent has long been narrowing.

On Wednesday, the main private opposition TV channel, it's called Halk TV, was raided by police in Istanbul and shut down.

Freedom of expression is an issue which the UK-based Turkish writer Elif Shafak has long grappled with.

My colleague Rebecca Kesby has been talking to her, and the conversation began with Elif's new novel.

Yeah, absolutely.

So this is Halk TV.

Um, this is a channel that's very much linked to the CHP, the main opposition party, or what used to be the main opposition party.

Um, it, it used to be a kind of marginal TV station actually, but over recent years as other bigger TV channels have been shut down, as you say, either by legal processes or by being forcibly taken over by pro-government businesses, it's become one of the last kind of, um, non-governmental voices.

He is going to be in prison for a really long time.

Prosecutors are looking for more than 2,000-year sentence for him.

Um, we've seen, you know, Halk TV as only the latest outlet to be shut down just a couple of weeks ago.

T24, another, um, opposition outlet shut down as well.

The heavy rain began on Wednesday, sweeping away cars and leaving hundreds stranded.

In other Turkey news, Turkish authorities took control of Halk TV on Wednesday.

Halk TV is one of the few outlets not aligned with the government, and the move comes amid a wider crackdown on independent media.

Former head of Israel's Shin Bet, Ronen Bar, sued Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for defamation in a Tel Aviv court on Wednesday, accusing the leader of falsely blaming him for the October seventh attacks.

Notably, on October twenty-seventh, Israel will hold its first elections since the Hamas assault.

Rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, said the orders against independent media and activists were aimed to restrict freedom of speech.

The appeal comes after a Wednesday raid by Turkish authorities on a broadcaster that is not aligned with the government, called Halk TV.

The Committee to Protect Journalists said that the broadcaster's owner was under investigation for allegations of bribery, which he denies.

Rights groups say Turkish authorities have increased their crackdown on independent social media accounts, journalists and academics, particularly LGBTQ+ groups.