Drones and helicopters pinpointed the location of the 11 fugitive commandos in forested hills around the Mediterranean resort of Marmaris after a two-week manhunt, an official said on Monday.
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The state-media reports that they are believed to be part of a group that raided the president’s hotel in an attempt to kidnap him.
Turkey’s Foreign Minister is to summon Germany’s ambassador to Ankara on Monday after restrictions were placed on a rally in support of Turkey’s President in Cologne at the weekend.
With almost 20,000 people detained and arrests continuing, there is rising concern the crackdown in Turkey after the July 15 failed coup is expanding to government critics and opponents, especially in the media.
Germany’s highest court rejected a bid Saturday night to reverse local judges’ ruling that a screen at the event couldn’t be used to show addresses from outside speakers – a decision that Turkey says prevented an address by Erdogan.
The government says the coup was instigated by US -based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, a former Erdogan ally who has been living in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania.
Since the attempted coup on July the 15th, President Erdogan’s government has launched a heavy crackdown.
“I came here because I am against the coup attempt in Turkey”.
Western governments and human rights groups have condemned the attempted coup but have also voiced concerns about Erdogan’s far-reaching crackdown.
Gulen lives in the USA in self-imposed exile, and Turkey is demanding his extradition.
Last week, Mr Erdogan lashed out at the top United States general in the Middle East, Gen Joseph Votel, after he expressed concerns about the future of military relations between the two allies in the wake of the coup bid.
Since the coup bid, more than 60,000 people in the military, judiciary, civil service and education have been detained, suspended or placed under investigation, leading to concern among North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies about the scale of the purges.
Germany is home to three million ethnic Turks, making up Turkey’s largest diaspora, and tensions over the coup have put authorities there on edge.
Diplomatic ties between Ankara and Berlin, which have been deteriorating for months, have been further strained by the failed coup attempt in Turkey last month and the crackdown that followed.
Meanwhile Turkey on Monday said it had arrested 11 fugitive soldiers suspected of involvement in an attack on Erdogan’s hotel during the night of the coup.
The government also said its deputy prime ministers and ministers of justice, the interior and foreign affairs would be appointed to YAS.
Dunford’s visit comes at a delicate time for Turkey’s relations with the United States, given Erdogan’s constant demands for Gulen’s extradition. He said he had narrowly escaped an attempt on his life.
“Unfortunately, the West is supporting terror and standing by the coup plotters”, said Erdogan in a televised speech at his presidential palace.
“They (investors) are not coming after the images revealed tanks were deployed on the streets, parliament was bombed”, he said, adding that some foreign orders had been cancelled in the wake of the coup.
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Customs and Commerce Minister Bulent Tufenkci was quoted as saying by the Hurriyet newspaper the heavy price tag may even go up but insisted that Turkey’s economic fundamentals were solid.
