On Thursday, March 27, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan took to the stage at an election rally, and with a choked, screeching voice claimed he is surrounded by an “evil alliance” trying to bring him down. He further asked for people’s support to bring about a record-breaking victory in this Sunday's local elections. Then, a new audio surveillance recording was leaked on YouTube, revealing Turkey’s top state bureaucrats discussing preparations for plotting a war against Syria. Within a few hours, Turkey’s Communication Directorate (TIB) blocked access to the popular video-sharing website. The TIB also blocked access to Twitter beginning March 21, and there is speculation that Facebook will be blocked soon as well.

“This is yet another controversial decision by the TIB,” Ersan Sen, an Istanbul-based lawyer, told Al-Monitor. “There is no legal justification for this blocking. However, this government has granted judicial immunity to some key state officials and institutions, including the TIB. Although theirs is professional misconduct, they have judicial immunity.” Sen added, “That aside, there is all sorts of wrongdoing with that leaked audio surveillance recording. It’s first of all a spying activity.”

Umit Ozdag, head of the 21st Century Turkey Institute, an Ankara-based think tank, agrees. “This is a serious security gap. There is an audio surveillance here, which shows even the state’s sacred conversations are at risk,” he told Al-Monitor. “Separately, the content of these leaked recordings clearly shows this government is taking very risky steps in its Middle East policy. We are facing a government that may take very dangerous steps.”

A European source who requested not to be identified told Al-Monitor, “There are no red lines left in this country. Anything can be touched.”