Turkish Airlines stops distribution of Zaman and Today’s Zaman on its planes


Date posted: December 23, 2013

ISTANBUL

Turkey’s flagship carrier Turkish Airlines (THY) has put an embargo on dailies affiliated with the Fethullah Gülen Movement, which has been in at odds with the government over an ongoing corruption investigation, local news agencies reported.

The airline, 74 percent of which is owned by the state, had already stopped delivering the English-language daily Today’s Zaman in airport terminals and on planes before slashing the distribution of its Turkish sibling, daily Zaman, by two-thirds, Cihan News Agency reported.

Doğan News Agency quoted the Turkish Airlines Press Office as saying Zaman, Today’s Zaman and another publication with links to the Gülen movement, Bugün, will remain in the free daily selection presented at terminal buildings, but the company will not hand out the newspapers inside the planes as of today.
THY passengers can get free newspapers by showing their tickets after passing through a security check at the international terminal, but the company also distributes a limited selection of newspapers for business class passengers inside the plane.

According to the press office, these dailies will only be removed from this selection.

Zaman, Today’s Zaman and Bugün have vocally criticized the government over the corruption scandal, warning authorities to avoid interference in the legal process.

The high-level graft probe has shaken Turkey’s political establishment, exposing a bitter feud between the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government and influential Muslim scholar Gülen, whose followers hold key positions in the police, judiciary and secret services.

The rift first became particularly visible to the public after the government announced plans to shut down private education centers, known as “dershanes,” many of which are owned by Gülen supporters.

The tension publicly escalated after daily Taraf revealed on Nov. 28 that the government had signed a National Security Council (MGK) decision recommending an action plan against the Gülen movement in 2004.

Taraf also claimed that the Turkish government had profiled a number of pro-Gülen groups based on religion and faith through the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), monitoring their activities until as recently as 2013.

Source: Hurriyet Daily News , December 23, 2013

Tags: | | | |


Related News

Turkey: Erdogan’s macabre dance in Africa

What is the sense in advocating for the transfer of investments of private individuals to a government backed NGO? Is President Erdogan indirectly telling African leaders that his empire in Turkey extends to African countries hence the outrageous demand? From the preceding, it is clear that President Erdogan has little or no respect for African nations hence this anomaly. I also beg to state here that the politics of Turkey should be left in Turkey.

Should Hizmet establish a political party?

If the Hizmet movement had believed that services to Turkey can best be provided through politics, it would have done so from the beginning. Civil society has a special place in democracies. One can also serve the country by rejecting democratic pressures and upholding rule of law and individual freedoms.

The end of ‘unshakable’ AKP myth

For the last couple of days, the codes and rules, which have been turned upside-down by Turkey’s ruling AKP, have become hard to keep up with since the AKP was forced to fight a self-created “monster.” The option for a snap election call seems the wisest option for his party but stakes are high over there too if he fails in his traditional “victimization” rhetoric, which worked well in many previous crisis, to convince his electorate.

Damage assessment report for Erdoğan

The wounds Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is suffering as a result of a war waged against the Gülen movement in connection with the corruption and bribery probe are becoming clear. Whether or not Erdoğan has become more authoritarian is now less debatable; it is a concrete fact rather than a perception.

11 Gülen sympathizers held hostage at Saudi hotel deported to Turkey

Eleven Turkish nationals who were reportedly detained in Saudi Arabia on March 15 have been kept in a hotel in Madinah for weeks, waiting to be deported to Turkey, according to a letter sent to Turkeypurge.com.

The Gülen movement: advocators of interfaith activities in Turkey

To cover up the [corruption] investigations, the newspapers close to the government use many derogatory labels for the movement, such as “promoters of light or moderate Islam,” “the protestantization of Islam,” “collaborators and allies of foreign intelligence agencies,” and “Christian missionaries under an Islamic guise.”

Latest News

Turkish inmate jailed over alleged Gülen links dies of heart attack in prison

Message of Condemnation and Condolences for Mass Shooting at Bondi Beach, Sydney

Media executive Hidayet Karaca marks 11th year in prison over alleged links to Gülen movement

ECtHR faults Turkey for convictions of 2,420 applicants over Gülen links in follow-up to 2023 judgment

New Book Exposes Erdoğan’s “Civil Death Project” Targeting the Hizmet Movement

European Human Rights Treaty Faces Legal And Political Tests

ECtHR rejects Turkey’s appeal, clearing path for retrials in Gülen-linked cases

Erdoğan’s Civil Death Project’ : The ‘politicide’ spanning more than a decade

Fethullah Gülen’s Vision and the Purpose of Hizmet

In Case You Missed It

The irrationality of demanding Turkish schools abroad be shut down

Abuja hosts 2016 Int’l Festival of Language and Culture

Pakistan’s Sindh High Court restrains Turkish teachers’ deportation

The Gülen Factor: Erdogan, the Coup, and the United States

Hate Speech is Undermining Turkey’s Fragile Democracy

Islamic scholar Gülen calls on praying for Palestinians, Syrians

TUSKON foreign trade summit opens Central Asia’s doors

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News