Turkey's Erdogan threatens court over freed journalists

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan fired a fresh broadside at the country's top court Friday over the release of two journalists, saying its existence could be in doubt if it did the same thing again.

The Constitutional Court -- one of the few Turkish public institutions not fully under Erdogan's control -- last month allowed the release of the Cumhuriyet newspaper's editor-in-chief Can Dundar and Ankara bureau chief Erdem Gul after three months in jail.

The decision to free the pair, detained since November on charges of revealing state secrets over a report alleging the government tried to deliver arms to Islamist rebels in Syria, infuriated Erdogan, who said he had "no respect for it".

On Friday he used a speech in the southwestern city of Burdur to renew his attack on the court.

"I hope the Constitutional Court will not try to repeat this in a way that would call into question its existence and its legitimacy," Erdogan said.

He accused the court of giving a judgment that was "against the country and its people".

The Cumhuriyet report sparked a furore, fuelling speculation about the Erdogan government's role in the Syrian conflict and its alleged dealings with Islamist rebels.

The arrest of the journalists also amplified concerns about press freedom under Erdogan, who personally warned Dundar he would "pay a price" for the story.

The pair are still facing trial on the charges -- and possibly life sentences -- and Dundar has vowed to use the hearings, due to start on March 25, to "put the crimes of the state on trial".

In what was seen as a fresh blow to press freedom in Turkey, last week the Zaman newspaper, which had been highly critical of the government, was seized by the authorities.

The newspaper has been closely linked with Erdogan's enemy, exiled Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen, accused by Ankara of running an organisation seeking to overthrow the government.