MohamedBazith
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President Tayyip Erdogan has called on the Turkish people to 'take to the streets' following an apparent coup attempt by some members of the Turkish military on Friday.
Speaking to CNN Turk on a video phone call Erdogan called on the nation to gather in the squares in response to the “attempted uprising”. He said it was an act encouraged by “parallel structure”.
The Turkish army announced the ceasation of the constitution and the imposing of martial law.
At approximately 1am Turkish army helicopters opened fire on the intelligence headquarters in Ankara and guards returned fire, Al Arabiya reported. Wwitnesses were quoted as saying they heard an explosion in the capital.
Tanks opened fire around the Turkish parliament building, Reuters reported. Elsewhere in Istanbul there were reports of gun fire coming from the airport.
Live footage from the scene showed what appeared to be citizens running for cover as shots were fired.
In an interview with CNN Turk Erdogan told a reporter on the station from the screen of a smartphone that he believed the uprising would be resolved ‘within a short time’.
He added that he did not believe that the ‘coup plotters’ would be successful and that he would be returning to Ankara.
His remarks followed an earlier statement by Prime Minister Binali Yildirim that a group within Turkey’s military had attempted to overthrow the government and security forces had been called in to do what was necessary.
If successful, the overthrow of President Tayyip Erdogan, who has ruled Turkey since 2003, would amount to one of the biggest shifts in power in the Middle East in years.
Turkey’s military said on Friday it had seized power, but the prime minister said the attempted coup would be put down. Yildirim said the elected government remained in office..
“Some people illegally undertook an illegal action outside of the chain of command,” Yildirim said in comments broadcast by private channel NTV.
“The government elected by the people remains in charge. This government will only go when the people say so.”
And Yildirim said those responsible for what he described as an attempted coup by a faction within the military on Friday would "pay the highest price".
Turkish state broadcaster TRT was taken off the air on Friday, after an announcer read a statement from the military saying it had taken over the government in a coup.
But CNN Turk later reported that some hostages had been taken at the Turkish military headquarters in Ankara. In a statement the Turkish military said all existing foreign relations would continue.
Meanwhile Reuters cited a pilot who said all flights from Istanbul’s Ataturk airport had been cancelled after the events in Turkey.
As the events developed countries around issued advisories to their citizens in Turkey to stay indoors.
"A message was sent saying that serious events were taking place in Ankara and Istanbul," said a French diplomatic source. "French citizens have been asked to stay inside." Similar statements were made but other countries.
Turkey, a NATO member with the second biggest military in the Western alliance, is one of the most important allies of the United States in the fight against ISIS.
It is a principal backer of opponents of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in that country’s civil war, and host to 2 million Syrian refugees.
The country has been at war with Kurdish separatists, and has suffered numerous bombing and shooting attacks this year, including an attack two weeks ago by Islamists at Istanbul’s main airport that killed more than 40 people.
Dogan News Agency footage showed cars and buses being diverted. CNN Turkey showed two military vehicles and a group of soldiers lined up at the entrance of one of the bridges in Turkey’s biggest city.
A Turkish official who did not want to be named said soldiers had been deployed in other cities in Turkey, but did not specify which ones. Dogan News Agency reported the national police directorate summoned all police to duty in Ankara.
After serving as prime minister from 2003, Erdogan was elected president in 2014 with plans to alter the constitution to give the previously ceremonial presidency far greater executive powers.
His AK Party, with roots in Islamism, has long had a strained relationship with the military and nationalists in a state that was founded on secularist principles after World War One, and which has a history of military coups.
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/2016/07/16/Gunfire-heard-in-Turkish-capital-Ankara.html
Speaking to CNN Turk on a video phone call Erdogan called on the nation to gather in the squares in response to the “attempted uprising”. He said it was an act encouraged by “parallel structure”.
The Turkish army announced the ceasation of the constitution and the imposing of martial law.
At approximately 1am Turkish army helicopters opened fire on the intelligence headquarters in Ankara and guards returned fire, Al Arabiya reported. Wwitnesses were quoted as saying they heard an explosion in the capital.
Tanks opened fire around the Turkish parliament building, Reuters reported. Elsewhere in Istanbul there were reports of gun fire coming from the airport.
Live footage from the scene showed what appeared to be citizens running for cover as shots were fired.
In an interview with CNN Turk Erdogan told a reporter on the station from the screen of a smartphone that he believed the uprising would be resolved ‘within a short time’.
He added that he did not believe that the ‘coup plotters’ would be successful and that he would be returning to Ankara.
His remarks followed an earlier statement by Prime Minister Binali Yildirim that a group within Turkey’s military had attempted to overthrow the government and security forces had been called in to do what was necessary.
If successful, the overthrow of President Tayyip Erdogan, who has ruled Turkey since 2003, would amount to one of the biggest shifts in power in the Middle East in years.
Turkey’s military said on Friday it had seized power, but the prime minister said the attempted coup would be put down. Yildirim said the elected government remained in office..
“Some people illegally undertook an illegal action outside of the chain of command,” Yildirim said in comments broadcast by private channel NTV.
“The government elected by the people remains in charge. This government will only go when the people say so.”
And Yildirim said those responsible for what he described as an attempted coup by a faction within the military on Friday would "pay the highest price".
Turkish state broadcaster TRT was taken off the air on Friday, after an announcer read a statement from the military saying it had taken over the government in a coup.
But CNN Turk later reported that some hostages had been taken at the Turkish military headquarters in Ankara. In a statement the Turkish military said all existing foreign relations would continue.
Meanwhile Reuters cited a pilot who said all flights from Istanbul’s Ataturk airport had been cancelled after the events in Turkey.
As the events developed countries around issued advisories to their citizens in Turkey to stay indoors.
"A message was sent saying that serious events were taking place in Ankara and Istanbul," said a French diplomatic source. "French citizens have been asked to stay inside." Similar statements were made but other countries.
Turkey, a NATO member with the second biggest military in the Western alliance, is one of the most important allies of the United States in the fight against ISIS.
It is a principal backer of opponents of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in that country’s civil war, and host to 2 million Syrian refugees.
The country has been at war with Kurdish separatists, and has suffered numerous bombing and shooting attacks this year, including an attack two weeks ago by Islamists at Istanbul’s main airport that killed more than 40 people.
Dogan News Agency footage showed cars and buses being diverted. CNN Turkey showed two military vehicles and a group of soldiers lined up at the entrance of one of the bridges in Turkey’s biggest city.
A Turkish official who did not want to be named said soldiers had been deployed in other cities in Turkey, but did not specify which ones. Dogan News Agency reported the national police directorate summoned all police to duty in Ankara.
After serving as prime minister from 2003, Erdogan was elected president in 2014 with plans to alter the constitution to give the previously ceremonial presidency far greater executive powers.
His AK Party, with roots in Islamism, has long had a strained relationship with the military and nationalists in a state that was founded on secularist principles after World War One, and which has a history of military coups.
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/2016/07/16/Gunfire-heard-in-Turkish-capital-Ankara.html
