Turkish court issues arrest warrant for owner of pro-opposition TV channel
ANKARA: An Istanbul court has issued an arrest warrant for the owner of a television channel aligned with Turkiye's main opposition party on charges of bid-rigging, the prosecutor's office said late on Tuesday.
The arrest warrant for Cafer Mahiroglu, owner of Halk TV, was issued as part of an investigation into an alleged criminal organization suspected of rigging public tenders by bribing public officials.
Several main opposition CHP members including district mayors were arrested under the investigation, part of a widening legal crackdown against the jailed mayor of Istanbul, President Tayyip Erdogan's main political rival, and the opposition.
Mahiroglu, a Turkish businessperson who lives in London, denied the charges in a post on X.
'I am being accused based on the fabricated false statements and slander of someone I have never met or seen in my life,' he said, adding that he has been living abroad for 35 years.
'So, there is a price to be the owner of Halk TV, the people's television, and to defend democracy, rights and law.'
He did not say if he would return to Turkiye to contest the charges.
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the Republican People's Party (CHP), who leads Erdogan in some opinion polls, was jailed in March pending trial on corruption charges, which he denies.
His arrest triggered mass protests, economic turmoil and broad accusations of government influence over the judiciary and anti-democratic applications. The government has denied the accusations and said the judiciary is independent.
Since his arrest, authorities have detained dozens of CHP members, officials from the Istanbul municipality, and other CHP-run municipalities.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
12 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Netanyahu survives opposition bid to dissolve parliament
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition survived an opposition-backed effort to dissolve parliament on Thursday, as lawmakers rejected a bill that could have paved the way for snap elections. Out of the Knesset's 120 members, 61 voted against the proposal, with 53 in favor. The opposition had introduced the bill hoping to force elections with the help of ultra-Orthodox parties angry at Netanyahu over the contentious issue of conscription for deeply religious Jews. While the opposition is composed mainly of centrist and leftist groups, ultra-Orthodox parties that are propping up Netanyahu's government had earlier threatened to back the motion. Local media reported Thursday morning, however, that most ultra-Orthodox lawmakers ultimately agreed not to support the proposal to dissolve the government. After their failed vote, the opposition will now have to wait six months to submit another bill. Opposition faction leaders had said Wednesday that their decision to bring the bill to the Knesset for a vote was 'made unanimously and is binding on all factions.' They added that all opposition parties would freeze their lawmaking activities to focus on 'the overthrow of the government.' Netanyahu's coalition, formed in December 2022, is one of the most right-wing in the country's history. It includes two ultra-Orthodox parties – Shas and United Torah Judaism (UTJ). The two parties had threatened to back the motion for early elections amid a row over compulsory military service. Military service is mandatory in Israel, but under a ruling that dates to the country's creation – when the ultra-Orthodox were a very small community – men who devote themselves full-time to the study of sacred Jewish texts are given a de facto pass. Whether that should change has been a long-running issue. Efforts to scrap the exemption and the resulting blowback have intensified during the nearly 20-month war in Gaza as the military looks for extra manpower. Netanyahu is under pressure from his Likud party to draft more ultra-Orthodox men and impose penalties on dodgers – a red line for parties such as Shas, who demand a law guaranteeing their members permanent exemption from military service. Ahead of the Thursday morning vote, Israeli media reported that officials from Netanyahu's coalition were holding talks with ultra-Orthodox leaders hoping to find common ground on the issue. In an apparent bid to allow time for those negotiations, Netanyahu's coalition filled the Knesset's agenda with bills to delay the dissolution vote. Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Wednesday that bringing down the government during wartime would pose 'an existential danger' to Israel's future. 'History will not forgive anyone who drags the state of Israel into elections during a war,' Smotrich told parliament, adding that there was a 'national and security need' for ultra-Orthodox to fight in the military. Netanyahu's government is held together by an alliance between his Likud party, far-right groups and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties, whose departure would mean the end of the government.
Arab News
a day ago
- Arab News
Israeli court rejects appeals to release eight pro-Palestine activists arrested aboard Gaza-bound boat
LONDON: An Israeli court ruled to keep in detention eight pro-Palestine activists who were arrested this week by the Israeli navy aboard the Madleen ship, which was bound for Gaza. The British-flagged vessel, operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition, had 11 activists and a journalist on board, including the Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who was carrying aid for Palestinians in Gaza as an act of solidarity amid the Israeli attacks. Israel released Thunberg on Tuesday following pressure from European governments. However, eight activists from Turkiye, the Netherlands, France, Germany and Brazil remain in the Ramla detention center, according to the Wafa news agency and lawyers from the Haifa-based Adalah legal center. On Wednesday, an Israeli court rejected the appeals made by Adalah's lawyers to release the eight activists and ruled to keep them in custody. The activists are Suayb Ordu from Turkiye; Mark van Rins from the Netherlands; Pascal Moreras, Riva Fiard, member of the European Parliament Rima Hassan, Yanis Mohammadi, all from France; Tiago Ovila from Brazil; and Yasmin Ajar from Germany. Adalah said that the Israeli court based its decision to continue the detention on the grounds of their 'illegal entry into Israel.' The legal center emphasized that none of the Madleen's activists intended to enter Israel or its territorial waters as they planned to depart from Sicily and reach Gaza's territorial waters, which are part of the state of Palestine, via international waters. The Israeli navy intercepted the Madleen ship early on Tuesday morning, detaining the activists and taking them to Israel. Adalah said that the court has scheduled a detention review hearing for July 8 if authorities have not deported the activists by that date. Following her release and deportation from Israel on Tuesday, Thunberg said: 'I was very clear in my testimony that we were kidnapped on international waters and brought against our own will into Israel.' 'This is yet another intentional violation of rights that is added to the list of countless other violations that Israel is committing,' she said.
Al Arabiya
a day ago
- Al Arabiya
Turkey to export 48 fighter jets to Indonesia: Erdogan
Ankara has agreed a deal to export 48 Turkish-made fighter jets to Indonesia, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Wednesday. Turkey's defense sector, including the famous Bayraktar drones, accounts for a significant share of the country's export revenues. 'As part of the agreement signed with our friendly and brotherly country, Indonesia, 48 Kaan (fighter jets) will be produced in Turkey and exported to Indonesia,' Erdogan wrote on X. The fifth-generation fighter jet Kaan is produced by state-run Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI). 'Indonesia's local capabilities will also be utilized in the production of Kaan' jets, added the Turkish head of state without providing further details on the production arrangements. In 2024, Turkey's defense industry export revenues reached $7.1 billion, an increase of $1.6 billion compared with 2023.
