Opposition deputies react to government blackout on kidnapped Turks in Iraq

ANKARA

Opposition CHP deputies hit out at AKP deputies over a court decision to ban media coverage of the kidnapping of Turkish consular staff in Mosul.

Opposition party lawmakers have raised questions at Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Commission about the blackout by the Turkish government on the Turkish nationals kidnapped by Islamist militants in northern Iraq.

At the commission on July 3, main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputies hit out at ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputies over a controversial court decision to ban media coverage of the kidnapping of staff from the Turkish Consulate in Mosul by militants of the Islamic State (IS), previously known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

Speaking to the Hürriyet Daily News, CHP deputy Mehmet Ali Edipoğlu said the issue was a hot debate at the gathering, with opposition parties questioning why a media blackout was necessary for the safety of the hostages, if they are secure as ministers have claimed.

CHP and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) lawmakers also criticized the government for allegedly turning a blind eye to the “splitting of Iraq into three parts, which [will] lead to the formation of a Kurdish state,” he said.

At a recent gathering of the commission on June 25, CHP and MHP deputies walked out of the meeting in protest at the ruling AKP.

The opposition deputies were reacting against flaws in a briefing in the commission, either made by the Foreign Ministry or by an individual governmental official, with regard to details of the seizure of the Turkish Consulate in Mosul.

Speaking at Parliament on July 2, MHP deputy Tuğrul Türkeş asked why Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu had not informed Parliament about the abduction for three weeks.

In reply, the chair of the Foreign Affairs Commission and AKP deputy, Volkan Bozkırsaid, said some issues should remain confidential. “One should make a choice between risking people’s lives and informing the deputies,” he added.