In brief
Turkish police conducted a dawn raid on the offices of Halk TV, a prominent opposition‑leaning broadcaster, interrupting its live broadcasts across the country. Eleven people were taken into custody, and the government appointed a new administrator to oversee operations. The move follows a series of earlier crackdowns on critical media outlets, drawing condemnation from opposition leaders and press‑freedom groups. Officials cited alleged financial offences against the channel’s owner, while the raid triggered claims of political repression and a threat to citizens’ right to information.
Police cleared the building of Halk TV in Istanbul in the early hours, arresting eleven people and shutting down the channel’s live programming.
The raid was carried out by Turkish financial crimes police who searched the site in connection with allegations of bribery, tender rigging, and money laundering against the station’s owner Cafer Mahiroğlu. A government administrator was appointed to run the channel, a standard measure used in previous seizures of opposition‑leaning media.
Halk TV, which is widely viewed as close to the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), had its live broadcasts and YouTube channel pulled offline earlier that day. Journalists initially were blocked from the premises but were later allowed to enter, reporting heavy police presence from inside the building.
Opposition figures condemned the raid as a politically motivated attack on press freedom. Özgür Özel of the New Party described the operation as “weak and cowardly” and warned that such actions are typical of a dictatorial regime. The Istanbul Bar Association also denounced the event, referencing the upcoming court case against CHP leader Ekrem Imamoğlu, who has been in prison for over a year on corruption charges.
International organisations point to the raid as part of a broader pattern of suppression. Turkey ranks 163rd out of 180 on the 2026 Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index, with 90% of national outlets reported as under government influence. Earlier in 2025, other channels including Tele1 were seized and their content neutralised, leaving the media landscape heavily skewed toward the ruling AK Party.
