Turkey Cracks Down On Military Officers Suspected Of FETO Links - Reports

ANKARA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th October, 2021) Turkish prosecutors have issued multiple arrest warrants for people, including active-duty military personnel and military school students, suspected of having links to US-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, the Anadolu agency reported on Tuesday, citing a source.

The Turkish government has designated Gulen's fellowship as a terrorist organization dubbed the Fethullah Terrorist Organization (FETO).

The source said that 158 arrest warrants were issued in the province of Izmir as part of a probe into possible infiltration of the movement into Turkish military structures, adding that 97 suspects have already been arrested.

Another 46 arrest warrants were issued in the Balikesir province, including for seven active-duty soldiers, a police officer, and five imams believed to be operating within a private military organization, the source was quoted as saying.

In Ankara, the prosecutor's office issued 123 arrest warrants for people suspected of communicating with FETO members via payphone and participating in the movement's activities, according to the report.

The Turkish government holds FETO accountable for the 2016 failed coup. Gullen has rejected the allegation. Thousands of people, including state and military personnel, civil activists, journalists and teachers, have been arrested on terrorism charges over suspected links to FETO over the past five years.