Turkish journalist sacked over critical Erdoğan tweet on Suruç bombing

ISTANBUL

A prominent Turkish journalist has been sacked over a social media post on the grounds that he anonymously criticized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan over the July 20 Suruç bombing.

Kadri Gürsel, a columnist for daily Milliyet, shared a post on his Twitter account in which he anonymously referred to President Erdoğan and criticized foreign leaders’ phone calls after the deadly Suruç bombing, which claimed at least 32 lives in Turkey’s southeast.

“It is shameful that foreign leaders call and console the person who is the number one cause of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant [ISIL] terror in Turkey,” Gürsel tweeted.

Following Gürsel’s tweet, daily Milliyet published a statement on its website that said the group had parted ways with Gürsel as his comments were not in accord with journalism ethics and the group’s publishing views.

Born in 1961, Gürsel started his journalism career in 1986. He has worked for several newspapers, magazines and news agencies. He is also the president of International Press Institue (IPI) Turkish National Committee.

Turkey’s press freedom record has come under fire in recent years with scores of journalists jailed, fired or harassed over their reporting. A Republican People’s Party (CHP) report revealed on July 22 the plight of culture and arts in Turkey, noting 65 cases of pressure, bans and censorship in the first half of 2015 alone.