The statement did not say whether Obama discussed with Erdogan Turkey’s request to extradite US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, Erdogan’s bitter foe who the Turkish government alleges was linked to the coup attempt.
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In strongly worded remarks, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters that Berlin had grave questions about President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s response to the foiled military takeover.
The foreign ministry has said criticism of the government’s response amounts to backing the coup.
Among the arrested are 103 generals and admirals, a third of the general-rank command of the Turkish military. “The people have the opinion that these terrorists should be killed”, he said. Erdogan has referred to it as a “virus”.
“If the (ruling) AK Party is ready on the issue of the death penalty, so are we”, MHP leader Devlet Bahceli told his lawmakers.
The death toll now stands at 290, with over 1,400 injured in the fierce clashes in Ankara and Istanbul.
SNP MP Alex Salmond said: “While no responsible government can support a military coup against a democratic government, no responsible democratic government engages in the suppression of civil liberties, the persecution of minority communities like the Kurds, the imprisonment of thousands of people, the suspension of Parliamentary rights, the reintroduction of the death penalty”. But, he adds, Turkey is following the rule of law. He said the July 15 victory over the plotters was “epic” and that no coup in the history of Turkey had been as brutal as the one that this government survived. “If their numbers are 3,000, 5,000 or 7,000, it doesn’t matter – they will be arrested and prosecuted”.
Prime Minister Binali Yildirim accused Washington, which has said it will only consider an extradition request if clear evidence is provided, of double standards in its fight against terrorism.
“We are the ones saying today rule of law has to be protected in the country”, she said in Brussels. Abolishing capital punishment was a prerequisite for talks with Turkey on membership of the European Union, to which it still aspires.
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, voiced “serious alarm” on Tuesday at the mass suspension of judges and prosecutors. The rule of law must prevail…
The agency said Erdogan’s Air Force adviser, Lt. Col. Erkan Kivrak, had been detained at a hotel where he was vacationing in Turkey’s southern province of Antalya.
A video of the attack on the hotel was aired on local television.
Sir Alan also shed further light on Prime Minister Theresa May’s conversation with president Erdogan, which took place on Monday night. It’s quite festive. But you can also see the divisions.
“I am not the person who planned or led the coup”.
Every day, funerals are taking place for those killed. The death tolls given by officials range from 230 to more than 300.
“In the first hours after the failed coup, we witnessed revolting scenes of caprice and revenge against soldiers on the streets”, Seibert said.
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The Turkish government says those who are believed to be involved won’t be allowed a religious burial, according to Turkey’s state news agency.
