11 January 2018•Update: 11 January 2018
By Cankut Tasdan and Kadir Yildiz
ANKARA/KOCAELI, Turkey
Six people surrendered to police on Thursday over alleged links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the defeated 2016 coup attempt in Turkey.
Two of them, including an army officer and a sergeant, surrendered in the capital Ankara, said a security source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on talking to the media.
Separately, in the northwestern Kocaeli province, four others surrendered, including a lieutenant colonel and two sergeants working in the fleet command and a teacher, another security source said.
Earlier this week, four soldiers from the Turkish Land and Naval Forces Command surrendered to Ankara’s Security Directorate following testimony by former Lt. Burak Akin.
Akin, an admitted FETO member, had surrendered after police found he had held secret conversations with FETO using encoded addresses.
Following his testimony, he was released under judicial control.
FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup on July 15, 2016, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.
Ankara accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.
