Retired generals to be questioned over 1997 ‘post-modern coup’
ANKARA
Three retired generals have been brought to the Ankara Courthouse for questioning as part of the ongoing investigation into the “post-modern coup” of Feb. 28, 1997.The persons of interest were identified as retired generals Orhan Yöney, Köksal Karabay and Ersin Yılmaz by Anatolia news agency. Two more retired generals, Hayri Bülent Alpkaya and Altaç Atılan, will also be brought from Istanbul to Ankara for questioning, the agency said.
In early January, former Chief of General Staff Gen. İsmail Hakkı Karadayı was released after his testimony in the same investigation on condition of judicial control. Since then, Karadayı has been required to report to a police station once a week and is prohibited from traveling abroad.
The “post-modern” coup, or the Feb. 28 process, refers to a military intervention that forced late ex-Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan to resign. The process is named for the Feb. 28, 1997, meeting of the National Security Council (MGK).
Suspects who have so far been detained in relation to the Feb. 28 investigation were sent to court on charges of “attempting to annul the government of the Republic of Turkey; or attempting to partially or entirely block the government from performing its duties.”
“We don’t want to relive the negativity that was experienced in the past, so we should fulfill the necessary requirements. The ongoing endeavor is aimed at this goal. The judiciary is fulfilling its own duty and as the executive [body], we are doing our part and we will continue doing so,” Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in response to reporters’ questions about developments in the ongoing Feb. 28 investigation.
