State of emergency will end ‘within a few days’: Justice minister

ISTANBUL

The emergency rule in Turkey, which was put into effect in the wake of the defeated coup attempt on July 15, 2016, has come to an end, according to a statement by Justice Minister Abdülhamit Gül.

“The state of emergency will end within a few days. However, ending the state of emergency should not be deemed as ending the struggle [against terrorism.] The fight against terrorism, the most persistent and determined fight against all kinds of terrorism, especially the Fetullahist Terrorist Organisation [FETÖ], will continue till the end,” he said in a speech at the International Struggle Against Coup and July 15 Symposium held in Istanbul on July 16.

The Turkish government declared a state of emergency on July 20, 2016 following the deadly coup attempt widely believed to have been orchestrated by U.S.-based preacher Fethullah Gülen’s network, which Turkish authorities refer to as FETÖ.

Gül also praised the Turkish judiciary’s efforts in putting the coup plotters on trial.

“All the investigations directly related with the coup attempt, except one file, have been completed. Some 2,161 defendants have been on trial in 94 separate files in courts. The trials of 195 files were completed in the first instance courts whereas the final verdicts were given in two cases after the court of cassation review. In those cases, 2,382 defendants were given sentences ranging from aggravated life imprisonment to several years of jail time,” he said.