Turkey sacks more than 18,000 personnel ahead of expected lifting of emergency rule

July 8, 2018  09H:34  GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME

by Alara Berrak and Biodun Iginla, BBC News and Reuters, Ankara

ANKARA  - Turkey issued a decree on Sunday dismissing more than 18,000 civil servants, half of which were from the police force, ahead of this month’s expected lifting of a two-year-old state of emergency imposed after an attempted coup in July 2016.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan greets members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) as he arrives at the Turkish parliament in Ankara, Turkey, July 7, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas

The decree follows President Tayyip Erdogan’s victory in last month’s presidential election and comes before he swears his oath on Monday, inaugurating a powerful executive presidency.

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The decree dismissed 199 academics from universities across the country, as well as more than 5,000 personnel from the armed forces.

Turkish authorities had already dismissed around 160,000 civil servants since the failed military intervention, the U.N. human rights office said in March.

Among those detained, more than 50,000 have been formally charged and kept in jail during their trials.

Turkey’s Western allies have criticized the crackdown. Critics of President Tayyip Erdogan accuse him of using the failed putsch as a pretext to quash dissent. Turkey says the measures are necessary to combat threats to national security.

The latest situation in Turkey

Posted at06:13

by Alara Berrak and Biodun Iginla, BBC News, Istanbul

So here is an update on what we know:

The attempted coup became apparent at about 19:30 local time on Friday when tanks were positioned on key bridges in Istanbul.

Armed forces were then seen in the capital Ankara a short time later and military jets started flying over the city.

A group - part of the army - then declared that a "peace council" now ran the country and there was a curfew and martial law.

Large explosions were heard near Istanbul's central Taksim Square and there were also reports of blasts at the parliament building in Ankara. 

Broadcaster CNN Turk was also reportedly taken over by soldiers, and its live broadcast was cut.

President Erdogan made a statement on Turkish television using his iPhone and FaceTime, calling on people to take to the streets to oppose the uprising.

Huge crowds confronted the coup plotters and gunfire and explosions were heard. At least 60 people died in the exchanges.

The president has now returned to Istanbul, calling the coup attempt an "act of treason" and saying the army must be cleansed. He told crowds the government was now back in control.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim ordered the military to shoot down aircraft being used by coup plotters.

At least 60 people have died, while more than 700 members of the armed forces have been detained.