Germany criticizes Egypt over raid on Anadolu Agency

BERLIN

Germany on Thursday criticized Egypt over the arrest of Anadolu Agency employees in a raid on their office in Cairo.

“The German Foreign Office is concerned over the search of Turkish news agency Anadolu’s Cairo office and the arrest of four employees,” a foreign ministry spokesperson told Anadolu Agency.

“We have often expressed our worries about the situation of press freedom in Egypt. We believe that a free and diverse press is extremely important for a functioning social system. It enables dialogue and exchanges, and thereby contributes to stability and development,” the spokesperson said.

Egyptian police raided the Cairo office of Anadolu Agency on Tuesday and the whereabouts of the detainees, which include one Turkish citizen, remain unknown.

Ankara condemned the raid and called for the immediate release of the four employees.

Turkey’s political relations with Egypt have remained rocky since 2013, when Mohamed Morsi -- Egypt's first freely elected president and a Muslim Brotherhood leader -- was ousted in a bloody military coup.