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Turkish gov’t intensifies efforts to purge Gülenists in judiciary, army

Sharderdik Kulic, left, and his wife at a pro-government rally Sunday in Istanbul’s Taksim Square.

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Authorities have rounded up 6000 people and the Turkish foreign minister has reassured Australia his government is back in control.

About 1400 Australians are believed to be in Turkey.

Bishop noted the country had a very complex society made up of Islamists, Kurd, secularists.

“What was interesting about this coup, it was not backed by Turkey’s secular political military and civilian opposition”, she told Seven Network.

Before the chaos, Turkey – a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member and key Western ally in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) – had been wracked by political turmoil that critics blamed on Erdogan’s increasingly authoritarian rule. High-profile arrests also included Gen. Bekir Ercan Van, commander of the Incirlik Air Base, which was used by US forces and the USA -led coalition to launch airstrikes against the so-called Islamic State across the border in Syria.

Grief-stricken relatives in Ankara and Istanbul buried those killed in the coup attempt, and prayers for the dead were read simultaneously at noon Sunday at Turkey’s 85,000 mosques.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has embarked on a revenge mission against the military plotters who threatened his Government and regional stability, raising fears for the future of democracy in the area.

The president has called on Turks to stay on the streets until Friday, and late into Sunday night, his supporters thronged squares and streets, honking horns and waving flags.

“We can not ignore this demand”.

The foreign ministry has raised the death toll to more than 290, including over 100 rebels, and says 1,400 people were hurt.

Turkey “needs to embrace a pluralist and liberal democracy, domestic and external peace, universal democratic values and conventions”, they said.

They include former air force commander General Akin Ozturk, who has been described as the ringleader of the foiled uprising.

The United States has long wanted Erdogan to do more to fight the Islamic State and moderate his increasingly authoritarian tendencies, but the coup attempt seems likely to push Erdogan in the opposite direction.

Yildirim said those involved with the failed coup “will receive every punishment they deserve”.

It also shattered fragile confidence among Turkey’s allies about security in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation country, a leading member of the US-led coalition against Islamic State. “I am afraid that Turkey is becoming more Islamic and less democratic than ever”.

Gulen has denied any involvement or knowledge about the attempted coup.

In the hours following Friday’s attempted coup, Turkish authorities dismissed almost 3,000 judges and prosecutors from their posts, suggesting that the list for such a purge was already prepared.

Eleven soldiers suspected of involvement in the coup were detained Sunday at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen airport on the Asian side of the city in an operation that saw shots fired in the air, Turkish television reports said.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s office said Putin said Moscow stood by “Turkey’s elected government” and expressed his good wishes to the Turkish people.

The failed coup and the subsequent crackdown followed moves by Erdogan to reshape both the military and the judiciary.

“I don’t think that at this hour, the United States would protect someone who carried out this act against Turkey”, Bozdag said.

Explosions and gunfire erupted throughout the night on Friday during the coup attempt.

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It also shattered fragile confidence among Turkey’s allies about security in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation country, which is a leading member of the US -led coalition against Islamic State.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks to CNN