On Aug. 16, Ozgur Gundem, one of the few remaining independent news outlets in Turkey, was closed by a decision from Istanbul's 8th Court of Peace. Pro-government newspaper Sabah reported the news as “PKK’s [Kurdistan Workers Party] newspaper is shut down. It was a tool for both the PKK" and followers of self-exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen. Police raided the offices of Ozgur Gundem and the homes of several columnists and staff and detained them.
Some employees were taken into custody for “spreading terror propaganda,” according to the official explanations.