Turkish police raiding newspaper close to Fehullah Gulen

Istanbul, 14 December 2014 (MIA) - Turkish police has raided the offices of daily Zaman, a daily newspaper close to the political network of self-exiled preacher Fethullah Gulen. Hundreds of protesters and journalists stood guard around the building in Istanbul, to try to stop the police from arresting the editor in chief.

Gulen, who has lived in the US since 1999, was a supported of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, but turned on him over the past year, and the two have since exchanged harsh accusations. Zaman supporters have gathered around the building since a twitter account announced that editors may face arrests several days ago.

Editor in Chief Ekrem Dumanli says that he will not allow the be pressured and to silence the newspaper. They accuse the Government of becoming increasingly hostile to critical press.

On his part, Erdogan blames the Gulenist movement, which is influential in the Turkish police and the judiciary, of being behind a number of corruption accusations that surfaced before this year's elections. The accusations failed to influence Erdogan's popularity, and he was easily elected as President.