Cabinet changes may take place in Turkey: Report

ANKARA

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A cabinet revision is reportedly underway in Turkey, where the country’s interior minister recently resigned, as at least five or six ministers could be changed with the start of the new legislative year, daily Cumhuriyet reported on Sept. 19.

The changes will reportedly take place in accordance with the ministers’ performance in the struggle against the Fethullahist Terror Organization (FETÖ), which was believed to have orchestrated the July 15 failed coup attempt.

The decision to appoint new ministers will be given by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, according to the daily.

The changes in the cabinet are reportedly expected to take place in October and November. Among the ones expected to be removed are ministers who have been on duty for a long time, Cumhuriyet also said.

Former labor and social security minister Süleyman Soylu replaced former interior minister Efkan Ala after his surprise resignation while former health minister Mehmet Müezzinoğlu replaced Soylu as labor and social security minister last month.

The shift came at a time when the government was carrying out a large-scale campaign against the followers of U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen following the failed seizure of government amid an escalation in the number of attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has also staged several bomb attacks in the past year, including the deadliest one in the country’s history on Oct. 10, 2015.