Turkish security forces have detained 18 suspects across seven provinces over alleged links to a network accused of orchestrating a coup attempt in 2016, the state-run TRT broadcaster reported Tuesday.
The suspects were allegedly linked to the Gulen movement, which the Turkish government accuses of attempting a coup that killed at least 250 people on July 15, 2016.
Also on Tuesday, an arrest warrant was issued for 23 suspects in line with the investigations by the prosecutor’s office of the western province of Izmir into the “covered structure of the group (the Gulen movement) within the Turkish armed forces,” said the TRT.
Nine of those wanted were soldiers, with six of them still active-duty members, while 14 others were military school students whose relations were terminated after the coup attempt.
Turkish authorities have also launched a man-hunt for five fugitives, two of whom are confirmed to be abroad, according to the TRT.
The Turkish government accused the group members of fraud in exams to help their infiltrators employed in the public sector and admission interviews at military schools.
The Gulen movement is allegedly led by and named after Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen, who his followers regarded as a spiritual leader.
The Turkish government has launched a massive crackdown on suspects with links to the movement after the coup attempt in 2016. ■
