Detention warrants out for 95 FETÖ-linked suspects

ANKARA/KONYA

Turkish prosecutors on Jan. 4 issued detention warrants for 95 people for their suspected links to FETÖ, the group that is widely believed to have orchestrated the failed coup attempt of 2016.

The Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in the Central Anatolian province of Konya issued 60 detention warrants as part of an ongoing probe into the group’s infiltration of the Turkish army, state-run Anadolu Ageny has said.

The suspects are accused of being “imams” of the illegal group and communicating with on-duty soldiers.

Police carried out simultaneous raids in 26 provinces to detain the suspects, the agency has said.

Separately, prosecutors in the Turkish capital Ankara also issued detention warrants for 35 personnel, including 10 on duty, of Turkish Naval Forces. 

In a statement, the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in Ankara said the suspects are accused of communicating with FETÖ imams through payphones. 

FETÖ and its U.S.-based leader Fethullah Gülen are widely believed to have orchestrated the failed coup attempt of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people killed and nearly 2,200 injured. 

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