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Turkish army seizes power from government

July 15, 2016

The Turkish military announced on Friday night that it had taken over power from the government “in the name of democratic order”.

“The power in the country has been seized in its entirety,” said the military statement read on local NTV. And quoted by Sky News.

An announcer on Turkey’s state broadcaster TRT subsequently read out a live statement, reportedly on the orders of the military, saying the country is now being run by a “peace council”.

According to Sky News, state TV has been stormed by the military and staff have been asked to hand in their mobile phones.

A Turkish state news agency reported that a top general is among several people being “held hostage” at the military headquarters in Ankara.

As well, NTV showed footage of tanks at the entrance to Istanbul’s Ataturk airport. It reported that all flights have been cancelled in and out of the airport.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan responded to the coup late Friday night, saying the coup was “an attempt at an uprising by a minority within our armed forces”.

Erdogan, whose whereabouts are unknown and who was speaking to CNN Turk by cellphone, called on people to take to the streets, saying, “We will overcome this.”

“I have never recognized any power above the will of the people”,” he added.

Earlier, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said a group within Turkey’s military has attempted to overthrow the government and security forces have been called in to “do what is necessary”.

“Some people illegally undertook an illegal action outside of the chain of command,” the Turkish Prime Minister was quoted by Reuters as having said in comments broadcast by NTV.

“The government elected by the people remains in charge. This government will only go when the people say so,” stressed Yildirim.

He said those responsible for the attempted coup would “pay the highest price.”

As news of the coup emerged, AFP reported that Turkish security forces partially shut down the two bridges across the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul as military jets were heard flying low over Ankara.

The Bosphorus and Fatih bridges were closed by the gendarmerie — a branch of the Turkish military dedicated to internal security — for traffic traveling from Asia to Europe, according to the news agency.

Meanwhile, Turkish military aircraft were heard flying low over Ankara.

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In 2010, Turkey arrested top army commanders who allegedly plotted to bomb mosques and overthrow the government.

At the time more than 200 people, including military officers, lawyers and politicians, were arrested on charges of trying to promote chaos in the country and stage a crisis with Greece.

In 2012, a Turkish court gave life sentences to three ex-generals accused of plotting to overthrow the government, though the sentences were commuted to 20-year terms on the grounds that the alleged plot failed.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)

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