Türkiye condemns Israel for preventing TRT Arabic journalists from reporting in Haifa

ISTANBUL

Türkiye on Tuesday condemned an “unlawful” Israeli police intervention targeting a TRT Arabic news crew broadcasting from the northern Israeli city of Haifa.

Türkiye’s Communications Director Fahrettin Altun said in a statement on X that Israeli police shut down a live broadcast by TRT Arabic correspondent Fehmi Shtewe and his team, seizing their equipment.

Altun added that police also used force against journalists from the Egyptian television channel Alghad TV.

“The Israeli government, unfortunately, continues its lawless actions directed against the journalists who cry out to all humanity about the massacres it has committed, the bloodshed and tears it has caused, its strategy of destabilizing the region, and the threat it has posed to world peace,” he said.

Altun denounced the incident as “a heinous assault on the freedom of the press and the right to information.”

“We leave it to global public opinion to judge the silence of the West and its 'democratic' institutions regarding these violations, particularly if and when Israel is the perpetrator, ascribing no significance to any norms or values and completely disregarding them,” he added.