Selahattin Kacuru was attacked when he went to the Turkish-Iranian border to investigate a story on smuggling and organised crime.
(Bianet/IFEX) – On 25 April 2011, Selahattin Kacuru, reporter for the Anatolian News Agency and the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), traveled to the Gurbulak Entry Point on the Turkish-Iranian border to investigate a news story on narcotics seized in the course of a recent operation against smuggling and organized crime.
The Turkish news site Diyadinnet.com reported on 25 April that Kacuru presented his ID in order to enter the customs area and cover the story. The journalist was reportedly subjected to verbal and physical attacks by a customs enforcement officer.
Afterwards, Kacuru applied to the customs police. When his complaint remained unanswered, he obtained a medical report from the Dogubayazit State Hospital and lodged a complaint at the prosecutor’s office.
Journalists from the district issued an announcement on the website of the “Dogubayazit” newspaper, DogubayazitGazetesi.com. They condemned the attack, saying “members of the customs office took revenge on the journalist for their colleagues who were arrested during the operation”.
