Mr Gulen has insisted that he had nothing to do with the uprising and suggested that Mr Erdogan could have staged the attack himself in order to legitimise a fresh crackdown on the judiciary and military.
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The Turkish Parliament would discuss a number of new measures to prevent future attempts at a military coup in Turkey as legal procedures were launched to heavily punish the plotters, the Hurriyet daily news reported Yildirim as saying at a press conference. At least 294 people were killed and more than 1,400 wounded, the government said.
Equally alarming for the country’s stability is that the coup attempt involved only part of the military, indicating serious rifts in an organization that, through earlier coups, bitter counterinsurgency and the Ergenekon tragedy, maintained solidarity. “However, our duty is not over”. Whether we will see them relit in our lifetime remains unknown.
“We shall rapidly conduct the cleansing operation so that they can not again show the audacity of coming against the will of the people”, he said, adding those already in custody “will receive every punishment they deserve”.
The Pentagon also announced that operations from Turkey by the US-led coalition against Islamic State had resumed after Ankara reopened its air space, which had been closed during the coup attempt. He has shaken up the government, cracked down on dissidents, restricted the news media and renewed fighting with Kurdish rebels.
“In democracies, decisions are made based on what the people say”.
Erdogan faced down the coup bid late Friday by elements in the military disgruntled with his 13-year rule.
Erdogan eulogized Erol Olçak, old friend and longtime political ally who was killed along with Olçak’s son.
About 6,000 people had been detained as of Sunday following rolling gun battles and airstrikes Friday between opposition forces and those loyal to the Erdogan administration.
“It is said to have been plotted by an Islamist division within the military”.
In the statement, the GNAT said the Turkish people “have foiled the coup attempt by taking to the streets and standing against the tanks of gang of coup plotters”, adding the plotters’ attempts to take control of national and private media have also “been quickly disrupted”.
The GNAT said some 3,000 plotters have been arrested and over 100 of them were “neutralized”.
Erdogan attended the funeral of Varank and five others at a mosque in Istanbul’s Fatih neighborhood, accompanied by former president Abdullah Gul and a large security detail. “But I think we’re all concerned, and we have expressed that concern, that this not fuel a reach well beyond those who engaged in the coup but that they strengthen the democracy of the country, strengthen the process, and use it as a moment to unite the nation”. “I say if we are strategic partners then you should bring about our request”, he said.
The opposition had appealed the legislation to the high court unsuccessfully, but Erdogan has not yet signed it into law.
Turkish President Recip Tayyip Erdogan has long accused Gulen of plotting to overthrow the officially secular government from a gated 26-acre compound in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains.
Gulen, who lives in Saylorsburgh, Pennsylvania, espouses a philosophy that blends a mystical form of Islam with democracy.
Kerry told CNN on Sunday that the U.S.is waiting for a formal extradition request to the State and Justice departments. He strongly denies the government’s charges.
“We will continue to clean the virus from all state bodies because this virus has spread”. He also called on Washington to extradite Gulen. While Erdogan has clearly fended off a coup, the most urgent question is this: Has he emerged even more powerful, or is he now a weakened leader who must accommodate his opponents?
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In recent years, the government has moved to purge the police and judiciary of Gulen followers.
