President Tayyip Erdogan wants to bring the national intelligence agency (MIT) and the military General Staff directly under the control of the presidency, Turkish officials have said, though this would require a constitutional amendment for which he would need the support of opposition parties.
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More than 50,000 people have lost their jobs nationwide and more than 18,000 have been detained since the coup, in which rebel soldiers came up against loyal supporters of the president. As at this day, over 60,000 people in the judiciary, civil service, schools and military, have been either removed, suspended or detained, over alleged links with Gulen.
The coup attempt and resulting purges have shocked Turkey, which last saw a violent military power grab in 1980, and have shaken confidence in the stability of a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member key to the U.S.-led fight against Islamic State and to stopping illegal migration to Europe.
Erdogan issued the third decree on Sunday since declaring a three-month state of emergency, putting deputy prime ministers and justice, foreign and interior ministers in the Supreme Military Council – the body that makes decisions on military affairs and appointments.
European officials have expressed concern at the scope of Turkey’s post-coup crackdown, while Ankara has accused European nations of not standing firmly in solidarity with Turkey against the coup bid it says was masterminded by U.S.-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen.
Thousands of supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan have gathered in the German city of Cologne for a demonstration against the failed July 15 coup in Turkey. Germany’s highest court rejected a complaint against that ban Saturday.
About 10,137 people have been arrested following the coup.
Erdogan had been on vacation in Marmaris when the coup attempt occurred.
The decision sparked anger in Turkey, with presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin calling the move unacceptable and a “violation of the freedom of expression and the right to free assembly”.
The rally – under the slogan “Yes to democracy”.
Organizers wanted Erdogan to address the rally directly via teleconference but their request was turned down by German authorities.
Sunday, the government dismissed almost 1,400 military personnel, including Erdogan’s top military adviser, as the president also brought the country’s armed forces under civilian rule.
Gulen has denied the charges and condemned the coup.
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General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the United States joint chiefs of staff, was to meet with Mr Yildirim and Turkish chief of staff General Hulusi Akar. Several counter-demonstrations were also planned, including one called “Stop Erdogan”.
