Overview
- Police executed a pre-dawn raid on Halk TV headquarters on Wednesday and a government-appointed trustee took control while the station's television and YouTube transmissions were halted.
- The Istanbul Chief Prosecutor’s Office issued detention warrants for 17 suspects in the probe of chairman Cafer Mahiroglu, with 11 people detained after searches of multiple homes that included relatives and a journalist.
- Authorities say companies owned or managed by Mahiroglu were seized and placed under trustee supervision as part of the criminal investigation that alleges manipulation of public tenders, bribery and money laundering.
- Mahiroglu, who lives abroad, denied the charges as baseless, said family members were detained, and accused authorities of using the judiciary to silence a critical outlet.
- Domestic journalist groups and international rights organizations condemned the takeover as a blow to press freedom and critics point to prior trustee appointments, including the 2025 seizure of Tele1, as part of a broader pattern of curbs on independent media.