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Tumult in Turkey: What We Know and What We Don’t Know
Tumult in Turkey: The Key Players
(about 1 hour later)
Military forces in Turkey attempted a coup Friday night. Initial reports differed widely on what had happened and who was in control of the country.
A faction of military forces in Turkey attempted a coup on Friday night, but within a few hours it appeared to be faltering. Here is a list of the key players involved in, or held responsible for, the night’s events.
• The Turkish armed forces issued a statement saying that it had seized full control of the country “to reinstate constitutional order, democracy, human rights and freedoms.”
• Another statement read on state television said martial law had been imposed and a curfew declared.
• The prime minister, Binali Yildirim, initially said on Turkish television that a group within the military had tried to seize power but had failed; he gave few details.
• Later, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaking on an internet video feed, called on the public to resist the coup attempt by going to public places.
• The state-run Anadolu News Agency said 17 police officers were killed outside Ankara by a military helicopter in an attack on a police special forces headquarters that had been seized by coup plotters. In public spaces where civilians had gathered, there were few reports of injuries.
• Troops blocked two major bridges over the Bosporus, the strait that divides Istanbul, and military aircraft were seen flying over Istanbul and Ankara, the capital. Troops appeared at the main Istanbul airport, and flights were halted.
• Sounds of gunfire were reported in Ankara in the area of the military headquarters. Anadolu said hostages had been taken at the headquarters, including the chief of staff.
• It was not clear to what extent the coup forces had managed to gain control of key state facilities and institutions.
• It was not clear who was behind the coup attempt, or why it had been mounted now.
• The whereabouts of President Erdogan, long the dominant political figure in Turkey, were not immediately known, nor how much of the country’s security forces remained loyal to him.
• The Turkish Armed Forces
• The Turkish Armed Forces
Turkey’s military is a trusted institution, seen as the guardian of the secularist principles on which modern Turkey was founded. It has intervened in national politics a number of times, including three previous coups since 1960, and as recently as 1997 it maneuvered to oust an Islamist prime minister.
Turkey’s military is a trusted institution, seen as the guardian of the secularist principles on which modern Turkey was founded. It has intervened in national politics a number of times, including three previous coups since 1960, and, as recently as 1997, it maneuvered to oust an Islamist prime minister.
Historically the military has opposed interventions abroad, but it is not known how senior officers, many of them appointed by Mr. Erdogan, feel about his recent interventions in Syria.
Historically, the military has opposed interventions abroad, but it is not known how its senior officers, many of them appointed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, feel about his recent interventions in Syria.
• President Erdogan
• President Erdogan
An Islamist and populist who has been the dominant figure in the country for more than a decade, Mr. Erdogan came to power promising to reform the economy and give the country’s rural, more religious majority a bigger voice in the capital. More recently, he has grown increasingly autocratic and alienated many Turks as he cracked down on protests, took control of the media and renewed war with Kurdish militants in the country’s southeast.
An Islamist and populist who has been the dominant figure in the country for more than a decade, Mr. Erdogan came to power promising to reform the economy and give the country’s rural, more religious majority a bigger voice in the capital. More recently, he has grown increasingly autocratic and alienated many Turks as he cracked down on protests, took control of the media and renewed a war with Kurdish militants in the country’s southeast.
• Fethullah Gulen
• Fethullah Gulen
Mr. Gulen is a former imam and one-time ally of Mr. Erdogan who now lives in self-imposed exile in the United States, with an extensive following in Turkey. He has promoted a more liberal stream of Islam, and his ideas are popular with the country’s police and intelligence establishments, though not necessarily the military. Mr. Erdogan accused Mr. Gulen and his supporters, whom he has called terrorists, of being responsible for the coup; he has repeatedly accused Mr. Gulen of plotting against him in the past. The Gulen movement denied any involvement in the coup attempt and denounced any military intervention in Turkey’s domestic affairs.
Mr. Gulen is a former imam and onetime ally of Mr. Erdogan who now lives in self-imposed exile in the United States, and has an extensive following in Turkey. He has promoted a more liberal stream of Islam, and his ideas are popular with the country’s police and intelligence establishments, though not necessarily the military. Mr. Erdogan accused Mr. Gulen and his supporters, whom Mr. Erdogan has called terrorists, of being responsible for the coup; he has repeatedly accused Mr. Gulen of plotting against him in the past. The Gulen movement has denied any involvement in the coup attempt and denounced any military intervention in Turkey’s domestic affairs.
• Republican People’s Party
• Republican People’s Party
The leftist main opposition party is considered less pro-American than the governing Justice and Development Party. It has been trying to find a way to break Mr. Erdogan’s political grip, but it would not be likely to benefit from a coup; in the past, the military has tended to sideline leaders of all political parties when it took power.
The leftist main opposition party is considered less pro-American than the governing Justice and Development Party. It has been trying to find a way to break Mr. Erdogan’s political grip, but it would not be likely to benefit from a coup; in the past, the military has tended to sideline leaders of all political parties when it took power. In a statement, party leaders spoke out against the coup.
• NATO and the United States
• NATO and the United States
Turkey has been an American ally and a NATO member since 1952. Though the Obama administration has criticized Mr. Erdogan’s crackdown on civil society in Turkey, the United States sees him as a stabilizing and mainly pro-Western leader in a volatile region. The American-led coalition fighting the Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq makes heavy use of Incirlik Air Base in Turkey.
Turkey has been an American ally and a NATO member since 1952. Though the Obama administration has criticized Mr. Erdogan’s crackdown on civil society in Turkey, the United States sees him as a stabilizing and mainly pro-Western leader in a volatile region. The American-led coalition fighting the Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq makes heavy use of Incirlik Air Base in Turkey.
