The new Turkey
Timeline Gulen movement/FETÖ May 2018

Istanbul court sentences 10 staffers from shuttered daily Zaman to jail terms

An Istanbul court sentenced 15 of 10 former staffers of the shut-down daily Zaman to a range of jail terms on terror-linked charges on April 30.  The former staff members were sentenced to jail terms of up to nine years for “aiding an armed terror group without being a member of it.”

While five suspects of the case were released by the order of the Istanbul 13th Heavy Penal Court, the files of three of the suspects were separated from the case. All suspects who gave their final testimonies to the court were acquitted of charges of attempting a coup d’etat, as well as of attempting to remove the constitution and the Republic of Turkey. Read the full article

Detention warrants issued for 9 Undersecretariat of Treasury staff members

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Thursday issued detention warrants for 10 people including nine former staff members of the Undersecretariat of the Treasury as part of an investigation into the faith-based Gülen movement, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

The Turkish Interior Ministry announced on Monday that 489 people have been detained in the past week due to alleged links to the Gülen movement, bringing the total number of people detained in first four months of the year to 10,472. Read the full article

Detention warrants issued on Thursday for 70 military personnel over Gülen links

The Konya Chief Public Prosecutor’s office on Thursday issued detention warrants for 70 former and active duty military members of varying ranks as part of an investigation into the faith-based Gülen movement, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s offices on Monday issued detention warrants for 25 air force officers over alleged Gülen movement links. Read the full article

12 detained while hiding from gov’t 

At least 12 people were detained at 4 locations police raided as the hiding places of the Gulen followers in Hatay province, on Thursday. Media said 12 were hiding in 4 different locations in bid to escape arrest as they have links to the Gulen movement. The detainees include an accountant.

During the raids, Hatay police seized some money which had been reportedly raised to aid families of the jailed Gulen followers. Turkish government blames the Gulen movement and calls it FETO, short for the alleged Fethullahist Terror Group.

The movement denies involvement in the coup and any terror activities.More than 160,000 people have passed through police custody, of which 80,000 were remanded in prison pending trial over Gulen links since the summer of 2016. Source

Turkish police detain over 110 FETÖ-linked suspects

At least 111 people were detained on May 3 across Turkey over their suspected links to the Fetullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), the group believed to have been behind the July 2016 defeated coup, according to security sources.

In an operation based in the Central Anatolian province of Konya, the organized crime department of the police arrested 40 FETÖ suspects, including on-duty soldiers, as part of an investigation carried out by the province’s chief public prosecutor’s office.

Additionally, 14 more suspects, including on-duty soldiers, were arrested in eight different provinces, as part of a separate probe carried out by the same prosecutor’s office. In the southern Hatay province, police held 12 FETÖ suspects in simultaneous operations that targeted “absence houses,” a label given to hideouts of secret FETÖ members, across the province.

Some of the suspects are learned to have used ByLock, an encrypted smartphone messaging app used by members of the network. Source

Detention warrants issued on Friday for 45 over alleged Gülen links

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Friday issued detention warrants for 45 people allegedly linked with the “police network” of the faith-based Gülen movement, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

According to the report, 32 of the 45 people being sought have been detained by police in three provinces.

The Turkish Interior Ministry announced on Monday that 489 people have been detained in the past week due to alleged links to the Gülen movement, bringing the total number of people detained in first four months of the year to 10,472.

The Turkish Interior Ministry announced on Monday that 489 people have been detained in the past week due to alleged links to the Gülen movement, bringing the total number of people detained in first four months of the year to 10,472. Read the full article

Detention warrants issued on Friday for 19 military personnel over alleged Gülen links

The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Friday issued detention warrants for 19 former and active duty military members of varying ranks and nine people allegedly linked to them as part of an investigation into the faith-based Gülen movement, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

The Konya Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Thursday issued detention warrants for 70 former and active duty military members over alleged links to the Gülen movement. In a similar move, the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Monday issued detention warrants for 25 air force officers. Read the full article

Nearly 60 FETO suspects arrested in Turkey

Operations target on-duty, dismissed police officers and army personnel.

A total of 58 FETO suspects have been arrested across Turkey for their alleged links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup attempt. 32 out of 58 suspects have been arrested in the simultaneous operations conducted in various provinces -- including the capital Ankara, and the western Izmir and southern Isparta provinces. 

The arrests came after the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issued an arrest warrant for 45 police officers including some who were dismissed as part of a probe into FETO’s police structure. The search for the other suspects is ongoing. 

Separately, Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issued arrest warrants for 28 suspects --including on-duty commissioned officers and dismissed officers -- as part of a probe into FETO’s army structure, according to judicial sources on Friday.

In operations conducted in 21 provinces, 8 of the suspects -- including one lieutenant colonel -- were arrested, according to the sources who spoke on condition of anonymity due to media restrictions.   Hunt for other 20 suspects was underway. Meanwhile, 18 suspects, who were allegedly providing financial support to FETO terror group, were rounded up in Istanbul and Yalova provinces. Source

11 including state-run Anadolu news agency reporter detained over Gulen links

At least 11 people were detained as part of police operations targeting followers of the Gulen movement in 13 provinces on Friday. Media reported that detention warrants were issued for 20 people over their links to the movement. The detainees include a local reporter for the state-run Anadolu-news agency in Aksaray.

Turkish government accuses Gulen movement for the July 15, 2016 failed coup while the latter denies involvement. More than 150,000 people have passed through custody while 80,000 were remanded in pre-trial detention since the summer of 2016. Source

Over 41,000 education staff dismissed since 2016 coup attempt in Turkey

A total of 34,000 teachers have been dismissed along with 5,882 academics and 1,372 administrative personnel from universities in Turkey as part of a post-coup crackdown conducted by the government, a recent report said.The Human Rights Association’s (IHD) Istanbul branch released a report on rights violations in the education sector during a press conference on Thursday.

The number of dismissed teachers has reached 34,000, that of academics 5,882 and university personnel 1,372, the report said. Meanwhile, the number of teachers who committed suicide after losing their jobs now totals 50, IHD officials said. Source

Police arrest 72 FETO suspects in western Turkey

A total of 72 people were arrested on early Sunday in Turkey’s Aegean province of Izmir for their alleged links to Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup attempt, according to a police source.

Among the suspects was a senior FETO member, said the source who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restriction on speaking with the media.

Police carried out raids at 118 different locations, which were said to be used as hideouts to carry out organizational activities, the source added. Source

61 suspects held over links to FETO

Police arrested 61 suspects in Turkey on Monday over their suspected links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), security sources said.

In the western province of Balikesir, 13 soldiers on-duty were arrested over charge of serving as the group's "covert imams", a term used to refer to suspected senior members within the organization, the sources said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to media.

Sources said that three more soldiers on active duty were arrested in the central Tokat province.

The remainder of the suspects arrested Monday were civilians, sources added.

Also, a court in the southeastern Sanliurfa province handed down prison sentences varying from 2.5 years to 12 years to three people on Monday for their involvement in a FETO network within the police force, a judicial source said requesting anonymity due to restrictions on talking to media. Source

587 detained in one week over alleged Gülen links

A total of 587 people have been detained in the past week due to alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement, the Turkish Interior Ministry announced on Monday.

Police detained 10,472 people over alleged links to the movement in the first four months of 2018. Source

Turkish court issues detention warrants for 189 FETÖ suspects

Detention warrants were issued on May 10 for nearly 190 people over suspected links to the network of U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, referred to by the authorities as the Fetullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), state-run Anadolu Agency has reported, citing a judicial source.

The chief public prosecutors’ office in the western province of İzmir issued arrest warrants for 96 people including 91 suspended soldiers with the Turkish Air Forces Command, said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to media.

Police have so far arrested 65 suspects during simultaneous raids conducted across 15 provinces, the source said, adding that operations are continuing to detain the remaining suspects.

More arrest warrants were issued in the capital Ankara for 93 former employees of a Gülen-linked school that was shut down after the July 2016 coup attempt. Source

587 detained in one week over alleged Gülen links

A total of 587 people have been detained in the past week due to alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement, the Turkish Interior Ministry announced on Monday. Police detained 10,472 people over alleged links to the movement in the first four months of 2018.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) government pursued a crackdown on the Gülen movement following corruption operations in December 2013 in which the inner circle of the government and then-Prime Minister Erdoğan were implicated. Erdoğan also accuses the Gülen movement of masterminding a failed coup attempt in Turkey on July 15, 2016.

Despite the movement strongly denying involvement in the failed coup, Erdoğan launched a witch-hunt targeting the movement following the putsch. According to The European Commission (EC) report on April 17, “since the introduction of the state of emergency on July 20,2016, over 150 000 people were taken into custody, 78 000 were arrested and over 110 000 civil servants were dismissed.” Source

104 sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment over July 15 coup attempt

An İzmir court on Monday handed down aggravated life sentences to 104 of 137 suspects for their alleged role in a failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

On Friday an Istanbul court sentenced 57 air force cadets to life and six others to aggravated life for their alleged role in the failed coup attempt.

In January, another İstanbul court ruled for aggravated life sentences for 23 military members and life sentences for 35 military personnel for attempting to change the constitutional order by means of the coup attempt in July 2016. Read the full article

Turkey issues detention warrants for 109 suspects on alleged terror charges

Turkey issued detention warrants for 109 people over their suspected links to the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ) on May 23, state-run Anadolu Agency reported, citing a judicial source. 

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issued detention warrants for 39 suspects including 11 former employees of the Family and Social Policies Ministry after they were accused of using ByLock, an encrypted smartphone messaging application that is said to have been used by members of the network, the source speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to media was quoted as saying.

Police have so far detained 13 suspects during simultaneous raids conducted in Ankara, the source said, adding that the operations to detain the remaining suspects were continuing. More detention warrants were issued in the Central Anatolian province of Konya for 70 suspects, including 43 serving soldiers.

The Konya-based nationwide simultaneous raids conducted across 23 provinces are ongoing, Anadolu Agency reported. The network of the U.S.-based Fetullah Gülen is widely believed to have been behind the July 2016 coup attempt, which left 250 people killed and nearly 2,200 injured.

A Turkish court on May 21 sentenced 104 people to life in prison for involvement in the failed military coup in 2016, in one of the heaviest penalties given since the attempt. Back on May 18, a court in Istanbul handed down heavy jail terms to 63 suspects including ex-military students and officers for taking part in the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey, according to a judicial source. Source

39 including ministry staff sought by prosecutor over Gülen links

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday issued detention warrants for 39 people, including 11 former staff members of the Ministry of Family and Social Policy and the Economy Ministry, as part of an investigation into the faith-based Gülen movement, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

According to the report the suspects are accused of using ByLock, a controversial mobile phone application. Source

Detention warrants issued for 49 soldiers in anti-Gülen probes

Detention warrants were issued on May 24 for 49 on duty and former soldiers in two probes linked to what the authorities call the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ).

The Adana Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issued the warrants for 30 soldiers, with police seeking the suspects across 13 provinces.

A part of another investigation launched by the İzmir Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, the police are also seeking 19 suspects in the eastern province of Van, the capital Ankara, the western province of Çanakkale, and İzmir. Source

Nearly 50 FETO suspects arrested in Turkey

Police detained 49 suspects across Turkey for their alleged links to the Fetullah Terror Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup attempt, according to a judicial source on Thursday. 

Twelve out of 19 suspects sought by arrest warrants were detained in the western provinces of Izmir and Canakkale, in the capital Ankara, and in the eastern province of Van, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.  

Separately, in southern Adana province 22 suspects, including serving army personnel, were rounded up by police for their alleged links to FETO.   In the central province of Tokat, 14 former police officers and one teacher were arrested for being FETO members.  Source

41 defendants given aggravated life sentences in İBB phase of coup trial

A high criminal court in İstanbul has handed down aggravated life sentences to 41 defendants due to their alleged role in the occupation of the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) building and the killing of 14 people in the incidents there on the night of a failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016.

There were a total of 52 defendants in the trial, which was concluded by the İstanbul 26th High Criminal Court on Friday. The İBB building was one of the places occupied by the putschists where 14 people including Professor İlhan Varank were killed. Varank was the brother of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s advisor Mustafa Varank.

The 41 defendants including former military officers were given aggravated life sentences on charges of attempting to destroy the constitutional order and the murder of 14 individuals. The court ruled for the acquittal of the remaining 11 defendants, all privates, due to a lack of evidence proving their involvement in the coup attempt. Read the full article

Purge-victim judge put in pre-trial detention on terror charges: report

Sevda Güven, a Turkish judge who has been fired from her job after a coup attempt in 2016, has been put in pre-trial detention in Samsun province over “membership in a terror organization.” Güven and her husband Zeki Güven, a former intelligence officer as staff section chief at Ankara security directorate, were detained during a simultaneous raids carried out by the Eskişehir police on May 22.

Mr. Güven was sent to prison later the same day on charge of membership in the Gülen movement, which is accused by the Turkish government of masterminding a coup attempt on July 15, 2016. According to Kronoshaber news portal, Mrs. Güven was also sent to prison after spending six days in police custody on similar charges.

The couple was reportedly fired from their jobs by decrees issued by the Turkish government after the coup attempt and had been on the run ever since. Source

More detentions over FETÖ links 

At least 20 soldiers were arrested across Turkey on May 29 over suspected links to FETÖ, a security source told state-run Anadolu Agency.

The detentions came after public prosecutors in the central Kayseri province issued warrants for 41 soldiers, including 31 on-duty soldiers, as part of a probe into FETÖ’s infiltration of the military, said the source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media. The suspects were apprehended during simultaneous raids conducted across 16 provinces. Source

National Defense University administrator arrested over Gülen link

An administrator of the Turkish military university, established by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to help clean up the armed forces after a 2016 failed coup, has been arrested over alleged links to the putsch, the Cumhuriyet newspaper said on May 29.

Authorities formally arrested Colonel Kadir Atakan of the National Defense University after detaining him some two weeks ago, the newspaper said. He was a director in charge of organizational matters at the school, which is not yet fully operational, the paper said.

Erdoğan had ordered the establishment of the university after the July 2016 coup attempt, when a group of rogue soldiers commandeered tanks and warplanes in an attempt to seize power. It was set up to replace the previous military academies, which were closed by an official decree after the failed putsch. Source

545 detained in one week over alleged Gülen links

A total of 545 people have been detained in the past week due to alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement, the Turkish Interior Ministry announced on Monday.

Police detained 10,472 people over alleged links to the movement in the first four months of 2018. Source

Detention warrants issued for 41 military personnel over alleged Gülen links

The Kayseri Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Tuesday issued detention warrants for 41 active duty and former military personnel as part of an investigation into the faith-based Gülen movement, the news website T24 reported.

According to the report, 17 of 41 officers including 31 active duty, have been detained in police operations in 16 provinces on Tuesday.

Last week, 112 officers were detained across Turkey as part of Kars, Manisa, İzmir and Konya based investigations into the movement. Source

Turkish gov’t detains 29 people for depositing money in now-closed Bank Asya

The Turkish government detained 29 people out of 59 warrants issued in Ankara on Wednesday for depositing money in private lender Bank Asya, which was closed by the government as part of a massive crackdown targeting the Gülen movement in the aftermath of a controversial coup attempt on July 15, 2016.

According to a report by Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency, the warrants were issued by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. Before the government seizure, Bank Asya was one of three banks with the highest liquidity in Turkey. The government took over the bank on Feb. 4, 2015, contrary to strict statutory banking regulations against such a drastic move.

Bank Asya’s banking license was cancelled on July 22, 2016 — seven days after the coup attempt — by Turkey’s Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK). The banking watchdog had ruled for a complete takeover of all shares of the Islamic lender by the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) in May 2015. Read the full article

7 given aggravated life sentences for transfer of cadets on July 15

Seven out of 16 defendants who stood trial on charges of attempting to overthrow the constitutional order through their effort to transport Air Force Academy cadets from Yalova to İstanbul on the night of a failed coup attempt in Turkey on July 15, 2016 have been given aggravated life sentences.

The trial was concluded at the İstanbul 27th High Criminal Court on Wednesday. Among the seven defendants were high-ranking military officers.

The military coup attempt claimed the lives of 249 people while a thousand others were injured when a junta within the Turkish military attempted to overthrow the government. The coup attempt was suppressed within several hours. The remaining defendants were given various jail sentences. Source

8 given aggravated life sentences for occupying governor’s office on coup night

Eight out of 90 members of the military who stood trial on charges of violating the constitution through involvement in a coup attempt in Turkey on July 15, 2016 have been given aggravated life sentences, the T24 news website reported on Thursday.

The soldiers were accused of occupying the İstanbul Governor’s Office on the night of the coup.

The İstanbul 13th High Criminal Court also ruled to acquit 80 defendants due to a lack of demonstrable intent, while the remaining two defendants’ cases were left out, indicating another hearing would be held for them.

Among the 90 soldiers, 14 were high-ranking officers. The military coup attempt claimed the lives of 249 people, while a thousand others were injured when a group within the Turkish military attempted to overthrow the government. The coup attempt was suppressed in around six hours. The Turkish government accuses the Gülen movement of masterminding the July 15 failed coup, although the movement denies any involvement.

Last month the state-run Anadolu news agency reported that a total of 285 cases were launched against coup suspects and that 889 verdicts of life imprisonment had been handed down in 137 of those cases up until then.

Of the 889 rulings, 392 were aggravated life sentences, or life in prison without the possibility of parole. Meanwhile, 1,393 defendants were sentenced to varying jail terms. Source