The authorities imposed a state of emergency on Thursday, strengthening powers to round up suspects behind the failed military putsch and suspending a key European rights convention.
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Turkey has imposed a three-month state of emergency and detained or dismissed tens of thousands of people in the military, the judiciary, the education system and other institutions. It is used by US -led coalition jets fighting the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq.
Since the coup, massive crowds of flag-waving Erdogan supporters have taken to the streets night after night to celebrate their leader.
Huge numbers were again expected to fill city squares Friday to celebrate Erdogan’s victory over the rebels, whose botched coup last Friday with troops, tanks and fighter jets claimed 265 lives.
He said he told that to Erdogan in a phone conversation this week.
The government says 246 pro-government people – forces and civilians – died during the attempted coup, and at least 24 coup plotters were also killed.
Erdogan, meanwhile, has blamed followers of US -based cleric Fethullah Gulen for masterminding the uprising. Erdogan has admitted there were intelligence failures in the lead up to the putsch.
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama on Friday denied prior knowledge or involvement by the U.S.in last week’s failed coup attempt in Turkey, saying reports to the contrary are “unequivocally false”.
Erdogan has said the new powers granted by the state of emergency will counter threats to Turkish democracy, though critics are urging restraint because they fear the measures will violate basic freedoms.
“Society has been forced to choose between a coup or an undemocratic government”.
Strains have also grown with the United States, which relies on Turkish bases to launch airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq.
“I told President Erdogan that they should present us with evidence that they think indicates the involvement of Mr. Gulen or anybody else who is here in the United States, and it would be processed the way that it is always processed and that we would certainly take any allegations like this seriously”, Obama said.
“This is not a declaration of martial law”.
The number of people detained has surpassed 10,000 while more than 4,000 of those have been arrested.
Cavusoglu said the link between soldiers involved in the abortive coup and Gulen’s extensive network of followers was “very clear”, adding that Turkey would do all it could “politically and legally” to secure his extradition.
Under heightened police powers, suspects can now be held without charge for one month, up from four days.
On restoring the death penalty, he pointed to Erdogan’s comment that there was popular demand for its reintroduction.
“Any reports that we had any previous knowledge of a coup attempt, that there was any USA involvement in it, that we were anything other than entirely supportive of Turkish democracy are completely false, unequivocally false”, Obama said during a joint appearance at the White House with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.
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Separately, Bekir Bozdag, Turkey’s justice minister, said on Friday in an interview with CNN Turk that any decision to bring back the death penalty should be considered from a legal standpoint and not based on European Union opinion.
