Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told Reuters on Thursday that there were significant failures in intelligence ahead of last Friday’s attempted military coup and that the armed forces would quickly be restructured and have fresh blood.
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Erdogan, who had been accused of autocratic conduct even before this week’s tough crackdown, said the state of emergency would counter threats to Turkey.
“We will remain within a democratic parliamentary system”.
Although this may seem severe at first, states of emergency in many other countries such as France and the USA have similar clauses.
Erdogan made the announcement during a live television broadcast in front of his government ministers after a almost five-hour meeting of the National Security Council.
Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said the state of emergency was aimed at averting a possible second military coup. The emergency rule was gradually lifted by 2002.
Fears swirl over the continued USA military presence and use of the pivotal Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey, whose underground vaults happen to host about 50 hydrogen bombs, a significant chunk of NATO’s nuclear arsenal.
Erdogan said the coup plotters failed in their attempt to topple the government, adding that they might have some plans for their own fate. At the Education Ministry, 15,200 other employees were also suspended while the ministry had revoked the licenses of 21,000 staff at private educational institutions. Emergency powers allow the government to take swift measures against supporters of the coup, in which more than 246 people were killed and over 2,000 wounded.
The Turkish government has laid the blame for the coup on a movement led by a U.S-based Turkish cleric.
While Erdogan is seeking to consolidate the power of his elected government after the rebellion, his crackdown could further polarize a country that once enjoyed a reputation for relative stability in the turbulent Middle East region. “We’d like to see the USA authorities take action on this, we would like to see cooperation”, Kalin said.
“We will use it in a fashion closer to our allies like France and others”, he told reporters as Parliament was debating President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s declaration of a three-month state of emergency on Wednesday. Of course, it would be a big mistake on the part of the United States not to extradite Gulen.
Ankara had submitted an official request for Gulen’s extradition to the US on Wednesday.
The response to the coup, which appears to have been orchestrated by a faction of the Turkish military, has been staggering in its breadth and ambition. There are also concerns that Turkey’s political tumult may disrupt its military role in Syria.
The lecturer, who is now overseas, said both local and worldwide staff received a letter from the university saying they must report for work at 8.30am today.
Amnesty International reported that at least 34 journalists had their press cards canceled.
The high cost of human lives of this frightful night would only be a small fraction if the coup had succeeded, because its leaders would have terrorized the country in order to take control – and they would have realized that the only way to intimidate would be through massive slaughter.
The two top European Union officials urged President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to respect the rule of law, rights and freedoms.
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Saban Ceylan, a taxi driver in Istanbul, said he expected his income to drop because of the state of emergency. White House later said the Justice Department and other US agencies were now reviewing the documents and will take action in accordance with a decades-long extradition treaty between the two countries with respect to the extradition of criminals.
