ANKARA: A television station linked to opponents of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Turkish authorities have withdrawn its licence to broadcast nationally days before local elections.
Fatih Karaca, head of the media unit of Ipek group of companies, said yesterday Turkey’s radio and television watchdog revoked the licence of KanalTurk television, citing a 2010 court decision.
He maintained that the decision against the station — which is linked to a movement led by US-based moderate Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen — was “politically-motivated.”
The move comes amid a deepening feud between Erdogan and Gulen’s movement, which Erdogan accuses of orchestrating allegations of corruption to discredit the government ahead of Sunday’s elections.
The watchdog says the station can only broadcast regionally.
AP
