Nine jet pilots back in the army after being released from detention

Fevzi Kızılkoyun – ANKARA

Nine Turkish Air Force jet pilots who were detained and then released as part of probes against Gülenists were re-assigned and are participating in aerial operations after the military said it was experiencing a personnel deficit due to major suspensions in the institution.   

The reassignment came after the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and the Defense Ministry asked a chief public prosecutor’s office in early September whether they could re-employ the nine as they had been released on probation after being detained in probes against Gülenists, who are accused of leading the July 15 coup attempt.

After receiving approval from the office, the TSK reassigned the pilots to aerial operations both inside Turkey and in northern Iraq and Syria. Most of the returning pilots were stationed at the Diyarbakır 8th Main Jet Base Command. 

As part of the investigations against Gülenists, 264 pilots were dismissed from the TSK.  

Greece detains to Turkish military personnels

Meanwhile, police in Greece have detained two Turkish military officers found in a smuggler’s car that had several migrants on board, officials said Oct. 15.

The arrest took place in the northern city of Xanthi on Oct. 13, local police told AFP.

The two men were crammed inside a BMW with Bulgarian license plates, alongside two Iranians and three Syrians, the police said.

It was not immediately clear how and when the two men came to Greece, and if they intended to file for asylum.

“We are not ruling out the possibility that they themselves were part of the smuggling operation,” a police source in Athens said.

Several Turkish nationals have fled to Greece following the July 15 coup attempt.

Among them are eight military officers who flew by helicopter to the northern city of Alexandroupoli shortly after the attempted government takeover in mid-July.

The eight men requested asylum in Greece, insisting their lives were in danger despite denying any role in the failed coup.

Greek authorities, however, turned down their initial requests for protection.

Ankara has called on Athens to extradite them all, but that request will only be considered by the Greek judiciary once the asylum issue is definitively decided, according to a Greek judicial source.