Graft probe blocked while PM weathers storm

ANKARA: A graft probe that has shaken Turkey’s government to its core and threatened Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s rule has been blocked, a prosecutor alleged yesterday.

“Clear pressure” from Istanbul’s chief prosecutor and police commanders had stymied further arrests in the investigation, which had already netted several high-profile political and business figures suspected of bribery and corruption, state prosecutor Muammer Akkas said.

His charge came the day after Erdogan reshuffled nearly half his cabinet after the resignation of his interior, economy and environment ministers, all of whose sons have been implicated in the scandal.

The outgoing environment minister, Erdogan Bayraktar said he had been pressured to quit, and stated “I believe the prime minister should also resign”.

The premier, though, appears determined to weather the storm, even as it inches closer to his inner circle and family.

He has claimed the probe was launched by a shadowy international cabal, and has ordered the sacking of dozens of police officers involved in carrying it out.

But observers see the developments as a grievous blow to his 11-year reign, during which he has built a reputation as a formidable economic steward but also an autocratic leader.

Yesterday, the Turkish lira dived to a new record low on the developments. The Istanbul stock market has also taken a beating. – Sapa-AFP