What is the Turkish government saying about all these arrests and dismissals?
Advertisement
“The people now have the idea, after so many terrorist incidents, that these terrorists should be killed, that’s where they are, they don’t see any other outcome to it”, he said.
An earlier report from the state-run Anadolu news agency stated the ministry had dismissed 15,200 education personnel.
“The goal of the declaration of the state of emergency is, in fact, to be able to take the most efficient steps in order to remove this threat as soon as possible, which is a threat to democracy, to the rule of law and to the rights and freedoms of the citizens in our country”, Erdogan said, according to a government translation. “This government doesn’t want to listen to others”.
Critics of the government were also targeted for their social media postings.
The violence surrounding the Friday night coup attempt claimed the lives of 208 government supporters and 24 coup plotters, according to the government.
“I urge the US government to reject any effort to abuse the extradition process to carry out political vendettas”, the statement said. Gulen has denied any knowledge.
Necati Alkan, a resident of Istanbul’s Fatih neighborhood, said: “From now on, we will spread justice in Turkey just like the Ottoman empire did for 600 years”.
“On the grounds of suspicion, he can be easily extradited”.
This chaos could have negative effects on Turkish-U.S. relations.
Ankara has called for Gulen’s extradition from the United States, where he resides in the Pennsylvania town of Saylorsburg.
An Ankara court late Monday placed under arrest 26 former generals suspected of planning Friday’s attempted power grab, including former Air Force chief Gen. Akin Ozturk, whom some Turkish media have painted as the mastermind of the plot.
“Turkey has a large armed force, professional armed forces and…” No reason was given for the detention. Yet that airbase was closed for a few days after the failed coup before reopening this week.
“We are not leaving these squares”, said Durhan Yilmiz, an Istanbul municipality worker. “(The) Turkish flag can not be lowered”.
“Turkey’s people are still reeling from the shocking events of the weekend and it is vital that press freedom and the unhindered circulation of information are protected, rather than stifled”.
Speaking ahead of the vote, CHP lawmaker Ozgur Ozel said the decision would amount to a “civilian coup” against Parliament and was a display of “ingratitude” to all the legislators who had gathered in the assembly Saturday to oppose the coup attempt. The bank’s Monetary Policy Committee said it has reduced its overnight marginal funding rate from 9 percent to 8.75 percent.
Access was restricted because of a “violation of privacy and publication of illegally obtained data”, a Turkish official told CNN.
Erdogan’s suggestion that the death penalty could be reinstated has sent shudders through Europe, with the European Union warning such a move would be the nail in the coffin of Turkey’s already embattled bid to join the bloc. Judges and prosecutors have been fired and detained, 1,577 deans of private and public universities were asked to resign, 1,500 people from the finance ministry were dismissed, 877 people from the interior ministry, 100 from the intelligence agency.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier responded to Erdogan’s speech by urging the Turkish government to maintain both the rule of law and a sense of proportionality in its response to the coup attempt.
Turkey accuses Gulen of running a “terror group” and has stepped up the pressure on Washington to extradite him, sending several “dossiers” it says are packed with evidence about his alleged involvement. They may also include new evidence that has emerged from the current investigation.
“I don’t think we have come to the end of it yet”, the president said.
Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, meanwhile, reflected the triumphant mood of authorities.
Advertisement
Around 1,400 people were wounded as soldiers commandeered tanks, attack helicopters and warplanes, strafing parliament and the intelligence headquarters and trying to seize the main airport and bridges in Istanbul. The lieutenant was one of about 30 soldiers who government officials have said were involved in the attack on the hotel in the resort of Marmais.
