Hundreds of Turkish military personnel have been killed in the fighting which restarted after the collapse of a two-and-a-half-year truce in mid-2015. Early Saturday, it was unclear whether the army or the elected government is in control.
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As the coup attempt unfolded, soldiers appeared at intersections, military jets were reportedly flying low over the capital, Ankara, and airspace around Istanbul’s main airports was closed, forcing global flights to divert.
It says the Turkish people value democracy and “will not let a group of putschists take it away in a desperate attempt to restore military rule”. “Nevertheless, the pathway to becoming a genuine democracy is not martial law”.
The coup attempt began late on Friday, with a statement from the military saying it had seized control “to reinstall the constitutional order, democracy, human rights and freedoms, to ensure that the rule of law once again reigns in the country, for law and order to be reinstated”.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said “we are monitoring the situation in Turkey closely” in a post on his Twitter account.
Policemen protect a soldier from the mob on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul. When a auto tried to stop one of the tanks, the tank rammed through the vehicle. At least one army tank and one other military vehicle were at the square.
In a night that sometimes verged on the weird, Erdogan frequently took to social media even though he is an avowed enemy of the technology when his opponents use it, frequently targeting Twitter and Facebook. Facebook declined comment, but Twitter said it suspected “intentional” interference with its service.
Gunshots near the presidential complex: Gunfire was heard around the presidential complex in the capital Ankara, Turkey’s official Anadolu news agency reported, citing witnesses. Reports from the world media suggests that no one has claimed any resposibilty yet.
He has ordered the military to shoot down aircraft being used by coup plotters, the BBC reported. Flight websites show no departing flights from Istanbul.
Although the military faction behind the coup attempt – the fifth since 1960 – announced late Friday that a “peace council” was now ruling the country, it is still unclear who is backing the group. He told them: “They have pointed the people’s guns against the people”.
CNN Turk reports that soldiers have entered its building as well, and they have forced it off-air. The studio is now being emptied.
Addressing a crowd of thousands of flag-waving supporters at the airport later, Erdogan said the government remained at the helm, although disturbances continued in capital Ankara. Erdogan was interviewed via Facetime on CNN Turk television. “I am coming to a square in Ankara”. He said the lower officers had rebelled against senior officers. “This government will only go when the people say so” he said on the private channel NTV.
They were arrested for illegal entry into the country, via Alexandroupolis airport in the north-eastern part of the country, around a dozen miles from the border with Turkey.
Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has called all legislators for an emergency meeting on Saturday, Anadolu reported. Government “is at the helm”‘ he said.
A source told the AP news agency that the number of dead “excludes assailants”.
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama is urging all sides in Turkey to support the democratically elected government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan amid a military takeover of the key North Atlantic Treaty Organisation ally.
The United States is calling on all parties in Turkey to support President Tayyip Erdogan’s government as world leaders expressed concern about the upheaval in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member country. According to other media reports Mr Erdogan is in a secure location. The State Department tweeted that social media is blocked in Turkey and urges Americans to use phone and email to communicate.
Possible theories behind the military coup:Erdogan making enemies with the Western Allies. Robert Amsterdam said in a statement Friday evening that he and his firm “have attempted repeatedly to warn the US government of the threat posed” by Fethullah Gulen and his movement.
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Turkey’s foreign minister said he had asked Greece to return them.
