Access to Independent Turkish, a news portal sponsored by Saudi Arabia, together with Saudi media outlets SPA and Okaz have been blocked by Turkish authoritories a few days after Saudis banned access to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency and TRT Arabic broadcaster in a retaliatory move. When Saudi Arabian authorities had banned Turkish news sources, a columnist writing for Okaz newspaper had said Saudi Arabia should take the battle to Turkish lands by supporting Turkish language news outlets.
Saudi Arabia has been buying or sponsoring foreign media to cover its crimes committed in the country, region and internationally. Particularly when Muhammad Bin Salman (MBS) became the Crown Prince, crackdown on dissidents and adversaries increased. MBS’ last crime was to kill Jamal Khashoggi by suffating and dismembering his body in Saudi consulate located in Istanbul. Analysts argue that MBS’ actions will be counter-productive and sooner or later he will be overthrown by the members of the House of Saud.
