European court rejects 25,000 Turkish coup attempt cases

ANKARA – Anadolu Agency

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has rejected around 25,000 applications from Turkish citizens in relation to rights violations after the July 2016 coup attempt, according to a Justice Ministry official.

The ECHR declined to hear the cases on the grounds that the applicants had failed to exhaust judicial procedures in Turkey, the official said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media.

Thousands of people have been arrested or dismissed from their jobs over suspected links to the Fetullahist Terror Organization (FETO) since the July 15 coup attempt.

Under Turkey’s state of emergency laws, which have been in place since shortly after the attempted coup, those dismissed from their jobs are entitled to have their cases reviewed by a commission.

The court referred to this procedure in its rejection of cases, the official stated.

FETÖ, under the leadership of the U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, is widely believed to have been behind the July 15, 2016 coup attempt that left 250 people dead and nearly 2,200 wounded.

Thousands of public employees have been suspended or dismissed from their posts over alleged links to the Gülen network since the attempted takeover.