A Turkish court formally arrested two opposition newspaper employees late on Friday, the state-run Anadolu news agency and the newspaper said, as part of a media crackdown that has alarmed rights groups and Turkey's Western allies. Last week, Turkey issued arrest warrants for the owner and three employees of the Sozcu newspaper, accusing them of committing crimes on behalf of the network of US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, blamed by Ankara for masterminding last July's failed coup.
Gulen denies the charge. The two employees arrested were Mediha Olgun, Sozcu's internet editor, and Gokmen Ulu, its correspondent for the Aegean province of Izmir, said Anadolu and the paper, which is fiercely critical of President Tayyip Erdogan and his AK Party. Since the failed coup, Turkish authorities have shut more than 130 media outlets and a press union says more than 150 journalists have been jailed, raising concerns about media freedom in a country that aspires to join the European Union.
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