Turkey Detains 100 Soldiers over Suspected Links to Gulen

Local Editor

Turkish prosecutors have reportedly ordered the arrest of roughly 100 soldiers over alleged ties to US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara accuses of orchestrating a failed coup in 2016.

State-run Anadolu Agency reported that the soldiers were detained in connection with suspected mobile communications with individuals belonging to Gulen’s “network.” The report noted the detentions were ongoing.

In December, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his government had begun new initiatives to target groups and individuals financing Gulen’s organization.

Nearly 80,000 people have been arrested over suspect links to Gulen under the two-year long state of emergency imposed five days after the coup bid. The state of emergency was called to an end in July, though coup-related arrests have continued since then.

Western allies have expressed concern over the scale of the crackdown which saw over 140,000 people suspended or sacked from the public sector.

In face of stringent criticism, Ankara has insisted the raids are necessary to remove the "virus" that is the Gulen movement's infiltration of key Turkish institutions.

The biggest purge of Turkey's modern history has targeted not just alleged supporters of Fethullah Gulen, the US-based preacher blamed for the coup, but also Kurdish activists and leftists.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team