Turkish soldiers block Istanbul’s iconic Bosporus Bridge on Friday, July 15, 2016, lit in the colours of the French flag in solidarity with the victims of Thursday’s attack in Nice, France. “The people have shown that they stand in solidarity with democracy and the elected government”.
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“We should all urge calm and respect for laws, institutions, and basic human rights and freedoms – and support for the democratically elected civilian government”, she said in a statement.
Prime Minister Benali Yildirim said 2,839 military personnel have been detained in connection with the attempted coup. The Anadolu Agency said Saturday that arrest warrants were issued for 48 administrative court members and 140 members of Turkey’s appeals court.
“Turkish armed forces was not involved in the coup attempt in its entirety. I hope there will be peace, stability and continuity in Turkey”, he said.
Some 104 coup plotters were killed in the attempt to bring down the Turkish government, he said.
Russia’s foreign ministry said the coup attempt, coupled with terrorist threats in Turkey and armed conflict in neighbouring countries, “brings a heightened risk to global and regional stability”.
Turkey’s minister for European Union relations Omer Celik said the situation i “90 percent under control”, but some military commanders are still being held hostage by pro-coup officers. “This government will only go when the people say so”.
Chaos prevailed on Friday night amid reports that soldiers were trying to take control of bridges and key areas in major cities.
He has ordered the military to shoot down aircraft being used by coup plotters, the BBC reported.
Turkey’s military staged a coup late Friday, imposing martial law with tanks on the streets of one of America’s key North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies – taking the world by surprise, NBC News reported.
Since he was unable to appear on state television, Erdogan was forced to communicate with CNN Turk via mobile video linkup using FaceTime.
A report from the U.S. Embassy in Ankara said military-appearing jets had been flying low over the city and Istanbul for about an hour.
Movement in and out of Turkey still isn’t normal, although the Ataturk airport in Istanbul, the country’s biggest, is open. “The people have taken to the streets and voiced their support for democracy”.
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A British Airways flight to Istanbul was diverted to Sofia and a Lufthansa flight to Istanbul is returning to its origin in Frankfurt, company spokeswomen told Reuters.
