Ankara appoints former AKP deputy as editor-in-chief of seized newspaper

Turkey’s state-run Savings Deposit and Insurance Fund (TMSF) appointed a former ruling party deputy as the editor-in-chief of Akşam newspaper, which was seized May 24, media reports said today.

The TMSF had confiscated some media assets of Turkish conglomerate Çukurova group – such as daily Akşam, daily Güneş, national broadcaster SkyTürk and radio channel Alem FM – citing the group’s public debt.

Mehmet Ocaktan, currently the news coordinator of daily Star, was appointed to replace İsmail Küçükkaya, who had been running the paper for the last five years.

Ocaktan, who had worked as a journalist before joining the Justice and Development Party (AKP), returned to his press occupation in 2011.