Journalists targeted in Turkey’s purge

Government links them to network that led botched coup

ISTANBUL — One journalist, who was on vacation, had his home raided in the early morning by the police. Others were called in to their bosses’ offices last week and fired, with little explanation. Dozens of reporters have had their press credentials revoked.

A pro-government newspaper, meanwhile, published a list of names and photographs of journalists suspected of treachery.

The witch-hunt environment that has enveloped Turkey in the wake of a failed military coup extended to the media Monday, as the government issued warrants for the detention of dozens of journalists.

The step followed the dismissals of tens of thousands of workers — teachers, bankers, police officers, soldiers, bureaucrats and others — as well as the arrests of thousands accused of ties to the conspiracy.

The government said the journalists, too, were part of a vast network linked to Fethullah Gulen, a Muslim cleric in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania whom it has alleged was the mastermind of the botched coup.

A senior Turkish official, speaking on the condition of anonymity in keeping with government protocol, said the dismissal of the journalists was not related to their professional activities, but possible criminal conduct.

But it has been a common reflex of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government to crack down on freedom of expression during times of crisis.

Many dozens of journalists have lost their jobs during his tenure. Others have been arrested over their coverage of national security issues. Still others have been charged with insulting the president, a crime in Turkey.

Paradoxically, at Mr. Erdogan’s moment of greatest crisis — as a faction of the military tried to topple his government — some of the prominent media outlets he once hounded lent him support, and the president’s ability to freely communicate with the public was decisive in thwarting the coup.

Contrary to some reports that emerged while the coup unfolded overnight between July 15 and 16, social media was mostly up and running in Turkey, and Twitter was used to mobilize opposition to the coup.

But not long after the coup was put down, the government began purging the state bureaucracy of those it suspected had links to Mr. Gulen. It also began cracking down on freedom of expression, a move that has long been a hallmark of Mr. Erdogan’s rule.

The announcement last week that Turkey would enter a state of emergency for three months has deepened fears among the country’s beleaguered journalists.

The emergency statutes give the government a freer hand to make laws by allowing it to bypass parliament and to stifle expression it deems harmful to national security.

At the same time on Monday, Turkish Airlines said it has terminated the contracts of 211 employees due to “nonfulfillment of performance standards” and in line with the “necessary actions” the company was taking against Mr. Gulen’s movement.