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Erdogan says wants Turkey spy agency, chief of staff under his control
by Staff Writers
Ankara (AFP) July 30, 2016


Turkey releases 62 military academy students: report
Ankara (AFP) July 30, 2016 - Turkish authorities on Saturday released from jail 62 students from Istanbul's military academy, more than two weeks after the July 15 attempted coup, local media reported.

Many of the students at Kuleli military high school in the city were believed to be teenagers caught up in the failed putsch by a rogue group in the military which tried to oust President Recep Tayyip Erdogan from power.

The students walked out of the gates of the prison in Maltepe on the Asian side of Istanbul to an emotional reunion with crying relatives who had been waiting, private Dogan news agency reported.

An Istanbul court ordered the release of the students late on Friday among a total of 758 soldiers, adding to another 3,500 former suspects already set free.

However, 231 soldiers were remanded in custody in the same hearings, the agency reported.

The case of the students had amplified concerns that many of the thousands of soldiers detained nationwide over complicity in the coup may have only been following orders and had no idea a putsch was in progress.

Turkish officials have insisted that each case is being examined and no individual is going to be unfairly punished.

Since the coup, nearly half of the military's generals and admirals have been dismissed.

Turkey detained more than 18,000 people over the attempted putsch which has been blamed on the US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen -- a charge he denies.

Nearly 70,000 people have been suspended from their jobs within state institutions, state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Saturday. Almost 43,000 of those were from the education ministry.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday said he wanted to introduce constitutional changes to bring the Turkish spy agency and military chief of staff directly under his control after the failed coup.

"We are going to introduce a small constitutional package (to parliament) which, if approved, will bring the National Intelligence Organisation (MIT) and chief of staff under the control of the presidency," he told A-Haber television in an interview.

The government would need support from opposition parties to push through the shift as a super majority of two-thirds of deputies is needed to make constitutional changes.

Erdogan added that in the wake of the July 15 coup bid "military schools will be closed... and a national military university will be founded" as part of a wide-ranging shake-up of the army.

He also said that in future the heads of the land, sea and air forces will also have to report directly to Defence Minister Fikri Isik.

The changes, announced just over two weeks after the coup, appear aimed at giving Erdogan more control over the armed forces and intelligence.

Rogue elements in the military -- who Erdogan says were controlled by the US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen -- surprised the authorities by launching the coup while the president has also complained of intelligence failures.

Erdogan also said a three-month state of emergency declared in the wake of the coup could be extended, as the French authorities did after a string of jihadist attacks in the country.

"If things do not return to normal in the state of emergency then like France we could extend it," Erdogan said.

The president said that until now 18,699 people had been detained in the legal crackdown after the coup, with 10,137 of them placed under arrest.

Turkey dismisses 1,400 troops as Erdogan tightens grip
Ankara, Turkey (AFP) July 31, 2016 - Turkey's government on Sunday dismissed nearly 1,400 military personnel, including a top aide to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in the latest round of a sweeping purge following a failed coup.

The announcement in the official gazette came as Erdogan sought to tighten his grip over the country by bringing the armed forces and spy agency under his control.

The coup saw a rogue group within the military unsuccessfully attempt to depose Erdogan, who has since launched a huge crackdown on those suspected of complicity.

Erdogan's aide-de-camp Ali Yazici, who was arrested five days after the July 15 putsch, was among the 1,389 dismissed by a new decree in the official gazette.

Chief-of-staff Hulusi Akar's aide-de-camp Levent Turkkan and Defence Minister Fikri Isik's executive assistant Tevfik Gok were also discharged.

State-run news agency Anadolu said the soldiers were dismissed because of alleged links to the movement led by US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara accuses of masterminding coup.

Gulen strongly denies the charges.

The latest expulsions followed the dishonourable discharges of 149 admirals and generals -- almost half the military's entire contingent -- along with 1,099 officers and 436 junior officers.

Erdogan told the A-Haber television channel late Saturday that he wanted to introduce constitutional changes to bring the Turkish spy agency and military chief of staff directly under his control, which would need parliamentary approval.

The new degree also confirmed his announcement that a new national military university would be established within the defence ministry, while military schools and academies would be closed down.

Military hospitals are to come under the control of the health ministry.

Anadolu meanwhile said Turkey's deputy prime ministers and the ministers for justice, interior and foreign affairs have all become members of the Supreme Military Council, which determines the armed forces' agenda.

More than 50,000 people have lost their jobs nationwide and more than 18,000 have been detained since the coup, in which rebel soldiers came up against loyal supporters of the president.

In Germany, home to the biggest Turkish diaspora, tens of thousands of Erdogan's followers were due to rally later Sunday in the city of Cologne, where tensions over the coup have put authorities on edge.


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