When asked what evidence the government had that Gulen was behind the coup, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said on Tuesday that the coup itself was the biggest piece of evidence, and that Turkey would provide hundreds and thousands of pieces of evidence to the United States of Gulen’s involvement.
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“There were materials presented by the Turkish government in electronic form to the U.S. government related to Mr. Gulen’s status, and the Department of Justice and Department of State will review those materials consistent with the requirements of the extradition treaty between the United States and Turkey that’s been on the books for more than 30 years now”, Earnest told reporters.
In the days following the coup attempt the Turkish government has made sweeping purges within the army, judiciary and civilian branches of the ministry of interior: 7,543 “coup plotters” have been detained, 318 of whom have been placed in pre-trial detention.
Turkish Prime Minister and the leader of Turkey’s ruling party, the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Binali Yildirim speaks during a party’ meeting at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Ankara, on July 19, 2016.
The lira weakened to beyond 3 to the USA dollar after state broadcaster TRT said all university deans had been ordered to resign, recalling the sorts of broad purges seen in the wake of successful military coups of the past.
Turkey’s justice minister says that some 6,000 people have been detained following a failed coup.
CCTV footage captured one large group heading towards the residence of embattled President Erdogan, before an explosion rips through the crowd.
European leaders such as the EU’s commissioner of neighbourhood policy Johannes Hahn have even accused the Turkish government of using the coup as an excuse to crack down on opponents.
The large number of people accused of being part of the plot to overthrow Erdogan has prompted worldwide concern with world leaders warning Turkey to respect the “rule of law” and to not to use the coup as an excuse to get rid of any political opposition. “Why should I keep them and feed them in prisons for years to come, that’s what the people say”. Turkey, as a moderate Islamic state, a member of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and, in effect, the bridge and a barrier between Asia and Europe, is a major linchpin of USA relations with two critical regions, the Middle East and Europe.
The president added Turkey is “a democratic state run by rule of law”, and “you can not put aside the people’s demands”.
The coup attempt by a faction of the military began Friday night and was over in less than 24 hours. “We need to respect, have Turkey respect, democracy, human rights and fundamental freedoms”.
President Erodogan has called on people to defend their country by taking to the streets for the rest of the week.
Erdogan’s detractors fear he will replace secular elements in the military with generals close to him and this could have an impact on morale at a time when the armed forces are playing a key role in the fight against IS.
The request for Gulen’s extradition is the latest move in the government’s efforts to rein in on dissent in the country. “If I stayed (in Marmaris) 10, 15 minutes more, I would either have been killed or kidnapped and taken away by them”.
He repeated his call that parliament must consider his supporters’ demands to apply the death penalty for the plotters.
At nightfall, thousands of flag-waving people rallied in Istanbul’s Taksim Square, Ankara’s Kizilay Square and elsewhere.
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“The people have the opinion that these terrorists should be killed”, he said.
