In Turkey, the editor-in-chief of a local newspaper dies after being shot. A suspect is arrested.
Istanbul – The editor-in-chief of a local internet newspaper has been shot dead in Turkey. Güngör Arslan was hit by several bullets on Saturday (02/19/2022) in front of the editorial building of his portal Ses Kocaeli in the western Turkish city of Izmit. He died in hospital from injuries to his chest and right leg, local media reported. The journalist was to be buried on Sunday (02/20/2022).
Officials say a suspect has been arrested. The background of the act was unclear. The Committee for the Protection of Journalists (CPJ) asked the authorities to clarify whether the attack on Arslan was related to his journalistic work.
Turkey: Editor-in-Chief shot dead – he raised allegations of corruption
The organization Reporters Without Borders also called for comprehensive clarification and referred via Twitter to an article that Arslan had published the day before his death. In it, Arslan raised allegations of corruption against the mayor of the municipality led by the ruling AKP party. The journalist accused the politician of having given orders to construction companies.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s tough crackdown on media workers in Turkey is methodical. The TV journalist Sedef Kabas was only taken into custody at the end of January because she is said to have insulted President Erdogan. The European Court of Human Rights recently sentenced Turkey to pay compensation for the imprisonment of journalist Deniz Yücel. Ankara’s actions violated, among other things, the right of the “Welt” correspondent to freedom of expression, it said. (kke/dpa)
List of rubrics: © Peter Kneffel/dpa
