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Military coup under way in Turkey as President Erdoğan tries to assert control Military coup under way in Turkey as President Erdoğan tries to assert control
(about 1 hour later)
Members of the Turkish military said a coup was under way in the country, despite its elected president claiming that the attempt had failed and his government remained in power. An attempted coup was under way in Turkey on Friday night, despite the country’s elected president claiming that his government remained in power and calling for his supporters to take to the streets.
In a statement released through Turkish television channels, people claiming to speak for the Turkish military said the army was now in charge of the country, claiming that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government had eroded Turkey’s secular traditions.
In response, a spokesman for Erdoğan said the coup had been attempted by only a faction of the army, and that he was still in command of the country.
Related: Turkey coup attempt: gunfire in Ankara as military aircraft fly over capitalRelated: Turkey coup attempt: gunfire in Ankara as military aircraft fly over capital
In a statement released through Turkish TV channels on Friday night, people claiming to speak for the Turkish military said the army was now in charge of the country and promised to uphold human rights. The president himself appeared unable to reach television studios, however, finally speaking with CNN some two hours after the military began to make its move via FaceTime on a mobile phone. Well past midnight in Turkey, Erdoğan called on Turks, some 49.5% of whom voted for his party last November, to respond to the coup by rallying in public.
In response, a spokesman for the country’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, said the coup had been attempted by only a faction of the army and that he was still in command of the country. “I urge the Turkish people to convene at public squares and airports,” Erdoğan said. “There is no power higher than the power of the people,” he continued, adding that the judiciary “will swiftly respond to this attack”.
“Turkey’s democratically elected president and government are in power. We will not tolerate attempts to undermine our democracy.” Earlier a spokesman for the presidency had claimed the president remained in control. “Turkey’s democratically elected president and government are in power,” the spokesman said. “We will not tolerate attempts to undermine our democracy.”
He added: “A group within the armed forces has made an attempt to overthrow the democratically elected government outside the chain of command. The statement made on behalf of the armed forces wasn’t authorised by the military command. We urge the world to stand in solidarity with the Turkish people.”He added: “A group within the armed forces has made an attempt to overthrow the democratically elected government outside the chain of command. The statement made on behalf of the armed forces wasn’t authorised by the military command. We urge the world to stand in solidarity with the Turkish people.”
Gunshots were heard in the capital Ankara as military planes flew low overhead. Army vehicles fanned through Istanbul, Turkey’s second city, with tanks seen outside the country’s main airport, and military trucks were filmed blocking the bridges connecting the city’s Asian and European sides. A soldier was filmed telling passersby: “It’s a coup, go home.” Gunshots were heard in the capital, Ankara, as military planes flew low overhead, and in Istanbul’s Taksim Square, where secular campaigners based a shortlived protest movement against Erdoğan in 2013. Army vehicles fanned through Istanbul, Turkey’s second city, with tanks seen outside the country’s main airport, and military trucks filmed blocking the bridges connecting the city’s Asian and European sides. A soldier was filmed telling passers-by: “It’s a coup, go home.”
Turkey’s prime minister, Binali Yildirim, echoed the president’s words, saying: “Some people illegally undertook an illegal action outside of the chain of command. The government elected by the people remains in charge. This government will only go when the people say so.” A de facto curfew appeared to have been imposed by parts of the military, with one state channel reporting that martial law had been imposed.
Turkey has a long history of coups, the most recent occurring in 1997, and one of the most brutal in 1980. President Erdoğan’s Islamist-leaning government was believed to be in a stronger position than most civilian administrations, shoring up his position during a decade of economic success. Turkey’s prime minister, Binali Yıldırım, nevertheless echoed his president’s words, telling a television interviewer: “Some people illegally undertook an illegal action outside of the chain of command. The government elected by the people remains in charge. This government will only go when the people say so.”
But recent events in Turkey and across the Middle East have destabilised the country, with Kurdish rebels fighting a new insurgency in the south-east of the country. The Syrian civil war has also spilled over into Turkey, most notably with Islamic State mounting a series of terror attacks across the country in the past year, killing hundreds. John Kerry, the US secretary of state, said he had heard the reports of unrest but could not comment. “I hope there will be stability and peace and continuity within Turkey,” he said while visiting Moscow.
Ned Price, spokesperson for the National Security Council at the White House, said: “The president’s national security team has apprised him of the unfolding situation in Turkey. The president will continue to receive regular updates.”
Turkey has the second biggest army in Nato after the US. It was a crucial ally during the cold war, although relations hit a bump in March 2003 when Turkey refused to let the US to invade Iraq from the north through Turkish territory.
Now they are military partners, albeit with significant political differences, in the fight against Islamic State. Last year Turkey agreed to let US warplanes and armed drones use the Incirlik air base, just 60 miles from the north-west Syrian border, to carry out raids against Isis. The aircraft had previously flown from Iraq or Arab allies such as Jordan.
Turkey has a long history of coups, the most recent occurring in 1997, and one of the most brutal in 1980. Erdoğan’s government was believed to be in a stronger position than most previous civilian administrations, shoring up his position during a decade of economic success.
But recent events in Turkey and across Middle East have destabilised the country, with Kurdish rebels fighting a new insurgency in the south-east of the country. The Syrian civil war, raging across Turkey’s southern border, has also spilt over into Turkey, with Isis mounting a series of terror attacks across Turkey in the past year, killing hundreds.
Members of the military established a curfew across parts of the country, television channels reported. Some Turks rushed to stockpile food and water, and withdraw cash from banks, admit fears of a potential administrative meltdown in the coming days.
Erdoğan’s Islamist-aligned government was also perceived by liberal wings of Turkish society to be infringing on the secular traditions established by the father of the modern Turkish state, Kemal Ataturk.
Observers were left fearing the regional repercussions of the attempted coup, with Turkey a major backer of rebel factions in the Syrian civil war, and a key partner in Europe’s attempt to stop migration flows to Europe.