50 suspects detained over suspected Gülen links

MANISA – Anadolu Agency

Fifty suspects have been arrested across Turkey over alleged links to the network of U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, widely believed to have been behind the July 2016 coup attempt, security sources said on May 28.

In the western province of Manisa, security forces detained 10 suspects for infiltrating the Turkish military, said a source who requested to be unnamed due to restrictions on talking to the media.

In the eastern province of Ağrı, 16 suspects were detained after a local prosecutor’s office issued detention warrants, another source said, adding that most of the suspects are academics.

Twenty-two Gülen suspects were also detained in the northwestern province of Edirne while attempting to flee to Greece, while two suspects were detained in the southern provinces of Osmaniye and the northwestern province of Balıkesir.

The Gülen network, which the authorites call the Fetullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), is widely believed to have orchestrated the July 2016 coup attempt, which left 250 people killed and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara accuses Gülen of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the Turkish state through the infiltration of institutions, particularly the military, the police and the judiciary.