Alaaddin Kaya, the former licensee of Zaman newspaper, and all his family members were subjected to persecution by the regime after 15 July. His mother, Fatma Kaya, did not leave her son alone in prison and visited regularly. Fatma Kaya, who fell ill with her sadness, passed away in Guven Hospital, Ankara.

He was the former owner of Feza Media Group, i.e. former licensee of:

• Cihan News Agency, 
• Today’s Zaman newspaper, which was published in English and it was also the most circulated in English, 
• Zaman newspaper, which was published in Turkish and it was also the most circulated in Turkish, 
• and many other media outlets.

The regime confiscated the assets of Alaaddin Kaya’s relatives as well as himself. Kaya went through a difficult period in which eight family members, including his wife, daughter-in-law and children, were arrested. Alaaddin Kaya was arrested on September 2, 2016, and put in Ankara Sincan Prison; however, his mother did not leave him alone in prison despite her advancing age. Worn out by the imprisonment of family members, financial difficulties, and social pressure, the grieving mother received treatment at Guven Hospital, Ankara, for a while. The old woman, whose body was tired due to her sufferings, died in the hospital. The prison administration did not allow Alaaddin Kaya to attend the funeral, which was against the law.

Zaman was the most circulated newspaper, which was published in Turkish and English, in Turkey. The newspaper was established with the suggestion of Mr Gulen. However, the regime deliberately shut it down to avoid the public getting the trustworthy news, instead of Erdogan’s media, which are sourced from the same table, by precisely the same highlights and the only aim is to support Erdogan, rather than delivering the actual news.