Turkey starts to probe daily's publication of Charlie Hebdo cartoons

Turkish prosecutors on Thursday began to probe a national daily's publication of part of the French Charlie Hebdo's first issue since last week's attack that claimed 12 lives in Paris.

The prosecution comes hours after Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu joined other government officials in condemning the reprinting of the Charlie Hebdo cartoons as a "provocation."

The national daily of Cumhuriyet has turned into a target of death threats and protests. Police raided its printing house ahead of the publication Wednesday evening.

The paper printed a four-page selection of cartoons and articles in a show of solidarity with Charlie Hebdo. Two of the columnists penned articles in honor of the slayed magazine and has stirred controversy among some Muslims.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu strongly criticized the daily for reprinting the Charlie Hebdo cartoon featuring the Prophet Muhammad, saying freedom of expression "does not grant anybody the right to insult another's beliefs."

"It is obvious that people who can even take an insult against them with tolerance and patience cannot take it to the same extent when there is an insult against the Prophet. If some are printing a caricature that features an insult to the Prophet, when this is the situation, when there is such sensitivity in Turkey, then there is a provocation here," he added.

He said that the daily's move has "nothing to do with freedom of expression. Freedom of the press does not mean freedom to insult."

"In particular, if it is an insult against a Prophet who has been a 'mercy to the worlds,' and who has a much greater meaning than our personalities and characters, this is not freedom of the press," Davutoglu said.

His statement came a day after police stopped trucks leaving Cumhuriyet newspaper's printing center and checked the paper's content after it decided to print a selection of Charlie Hebdo caricatures.

However, the daily said that the police allowed distribution to proceed after thinking that the satirical French newspaper's latest cover featuring the Prophet was not published.

As a supplement, the daily published a selection from Charlie Hebdo's much-anticipated Jan. 14 issue in support of free speech.

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