Latest news with #Koksal
Reuters
02-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Turkey's Zorlu says CEO resigns after probe into Ramadan email
ANKARA, March 2 (Reuters) - Turkey's Zorlu Holding said late on Saturday its chief executive Cem Koksal had resigned, after authorities launched a probe into an email exchange for allegedly limiting freedom of belief over the celebration of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. On Friday, Ergun Guler, chief executive of electronics firm Vestel ( opens new tab, which is a subsidiary of Zorlu Holding, sent a message to employees celebrating the start of Ramadan, which began on Saturday. Koksal later sent an internal email saying the company only celebrated Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha officially, not Ramadan, and that it wanted to maintain a secular stance as it worked to become a multinational corporation, with employees from various beliefs and origins. After images of that email were circulated by local media and on social media, an Istanbul prosecutor's office launched an investigation into the issue, the state-owned Anadolu news agency said, adding that Koksal was detained on Saturday for "obstructing the exercise of freedom of belief, thought, and expression". In a statement, Zorlu Holding later said it ackowledged the "sensitivity" caused by the "internal argument over management principles", and that Koksal had resigned as of March 1. "It is known to the public that Zorlu Holding has been an institution with family values and business ethics since 1953, and has been integrated with the national and spiritual values of our country," it said. "As the Zorlu Group, we convey our sadness due to what has happened to all our stakeholders and the public," it added. The conglomerate operates in the energy, real estate, electronics, white goods and textile sectors. The investigation into Koksal comes after a battle between President Tayyip Erdogan and Turkey's biggest business group TUSIAD last month over comments from executives in the group criticising a government crackdown on opposition figures.
Bloomberg
01-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Turkey Probes Zorlu Holding CEO Over Islamic Holy Month Email
Turkish prosecutors launched a criminal investigation into Zorlu Holding CEO Bekir Cem Koksal over allegedly warning his workers in an email against celebrating the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency. The case against Koksal has the become the latest in a series of probes against prominent Turkish businessmen along with journalists and opposition figures in what critics of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan call a crackdown with the aim of muzzling dissent.
