Beiruting News

Merve Buyuksarac, 26, had posted a poem taken from a satirical magazine on photo sharing site Instagram that criticised President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Her arrest and questioning came as Turkey imposed strict restrictions on the media and freedom of speech following the Paris terror attacks.

Last week armed Turkish police stopped delivery trucks filled with newspapers to ensure no pictures from France's Charlie Hebdo magazine had been printed.

They also raided offices of Cumhuriyet last Wednesday as their latest issue was meant to have a four-page supplement about the satirical magazine.

Around 99.8 per cent of Turkey's population are Muslim and there has been heated debate in the country over freedom of speech since the Paris attacks.

Islamic extremists had massacred 12 people at the French paper on January 7 after they had published cartoons of the Muslim prophet Muhammad.

Turkey also issued a court order banning access to some websites which published Charlie Hebdo's most recent front cover of a cartoon of Muhammad.

It appears their crackdown on media has also extended to its readers after officials confirmed Ms Buyuksarac had been taken before prosecutors.

She was questioned in Istanbul over the social media posting which officials said had insulted the Turkish president.