Over 750 Members of Turkish Armed Forces Arrested across Turkey
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Scores of members from Turkish armed forces were arrested across the country after a coup attempt blamed by the government on supporters of US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen.
754 members of Turkish armed forces were arrested for involvement in the coup, the Anadulu news agency reported.
A Turkish official added that 29 colonels and 5 generals had been removed from their posts. At least 60 people were killed in the turmoil, AFP reported.
The majority of those killed were civilians and most of those detained are soldiers.
Dozens of soldiers backing the coup against the Turkish government on Saturday surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul that they had held throughout the night, television pictures showed.
Pictures showed supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan jubilantly jumping onto one of the tanks left behind by the departing soldiers, cheering, making victory signs and waving the Turkish flag.
Others sought to run across the bridge that had been closed all night, kicking the helmets and protective gear left behind by the rebel soldiers as they passed.
Turkey on Saturday appointed a new acting army chief of staff after an attempted coup to topple the government, the country’s prime minister said.