Law enforcers in Turkey conducted a raid on Sunday which resulted in the arrest of media personalities such as journalists, scriptwriters and executives, CNN reported.
The more than 23 individuals who were arrested were found to be members of the religious group Gulen. Since police considers the movement as a terrorist organization, those who were arrested have been charged with supporting and leading armed terrorism.
Among those who were arrested include Ekrem Dumanli, editor-in-chief of Turkey's newspaper Zaman and Hidayet Karaca, the chief of the Samanyou television network. Other people working for the network such as directors and producers were also arrested during the raid, according to The Guardian.
"This is a shameful sight for Turkey," Karaca told reporters as he was being dragged away by the police. "Sadly, this is how they treat a media group with tens of television and radio stations, internet media and magazines in 21st-century Turkey."
The raid on Zaman was carried out on Sunday morning but was thwarted by protesters who prevented the police from entering the building. However, law enforcers returned a few hours later to conduct the arrests, BBC reported.
The movement, which has followers in different parts of the globe, was established by Fethullah Gulen. For years, the group has heavily criticized the Turkish government which is under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan due to the prevalence of corruption CNN reported.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said some members of Gulen use their careers and media outlets, such as Zaman and Samanyou to report against the government and eventually topple Erdogan's administration.
Daniel Calingaert, the executive of a United States-based pro-democracy group Freedom House, criticized the government's raid and called in an attempt by those in power to silence journalists from reporting about the country's issues.
"These arrests appear to be government retribution against journalists reporting on corruption and criticizing the government," he said in an official press release. "The crackdown on speech in Turkey must end."
Supporters of the movement argued that the latest raid on Sunday is the government's attempt to divert the public's attention away from the corruption issues. The Alliance of Shared Values, a group that represents supporters of Gulen in the U.S., said the government's actions are politically motivated.
"Whether driven by a desire to shift public attention from the anniversary of corruption probes, or by public criticisms of systematic nepotism and excess of the presidential palace, these raids and arrests are politically motivated," the group said in a statement.
"Such actions taint Turkey's image around the world and raise the growing authoritarianism of the Erdogan regime to a new level," the Alliance for Shared Values added.
