Turkish leader calls failed military coup 'a gift from God'

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commented Sunday on the failed military coup in Turkey over the weekend, saying: "Israel and Turkey have agreed on a reconciliation process, and we assume it will continue regardless of dramatic events that took place over the weekend." Netanyahu was speaking at the beginning of the weekly Diplomatic-Security Cabinet.

Joining other leading nations, the Israeli Foreign Ministry issued a statement of support for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday, saying, "Israel respects the democratic process in and looks forward to the continuation of the reconciliation process between Turkey and Israel."


Credit: Reuters


What could have been Erdogan's worst nightmare -- an attempted military coup against his regime -- took just a few hours to turn into a dream for him, as he took advantage of the emergency situation to carry out a thorough housecleaning of the army and the judicial system.

For several hours on Friday night, violence shook Turkey's two main cities, as the armed faction that was trying to seize power blocked a bridge in Istanbul and strafed Turkish intelligence headquarters and the parliament building in the capital, Ankara.

In the early hours of the attempted coup, after the first tanks rolled onto the streets in Istanbul and Ankara and with helicopters and planes were flying low over Turkey's major cities, there was a sense that the age of Erdogan was over.

But the attempted putsch was put down within hours, and the announcement came over the radio that the army was in control of the country.

At least 265 people were killed. An official said 161 of them were mostly civilians and police officers, while the remaining 104 were coup supporters.

The government declared the situation under control, saying 2,839 people had been rounded up, from foot soldiers to senior officers, including those who formed "the backbone" of the rebellion.

On Saturday night, less than 24 hours after dramatic episode, tanks were still in the streets of Ankara and Istanbul, but the atmosphere was relatively quiet. Erdogan arrived at a rally of supporters and was greeted by applause.

"They will pay a heavy price for this," he said. "This uprising is a gift from God to us because this will be a reason to cleanse our army."

Hundreds of soldiers were arrested in Ankara for alleged involvement in the coup, leaving police stations overflowing. Among those detained were top military commanders, including the head of the Second Army, which protects the country's borders with Syria, Iraq and Iran, state-run Anadolu news agency said. There were also reports that some 100 military officers had been arrested at Turkish air force bases because military aircraft had taken part in the attempt to oust the president.

Authorities also began a major crackdown in the judiciary over suspected links to U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, removing from their posts and ordering the detention of nearly 3,000 prosecutors and judges, including from top courts.

In an apparently pre-existing plan, Erdogan and his loyal cohort announced that 2,745 judges would be removed from their posts.

Erdogan has blamed the coup on supporters of Gulen, whom he has frequently accused of trying to foment uprising in the military, media and judiciary.

Ten members of the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors and two members of the Constitutional Court have already been detained, officials said.

U.S. President Barack Obama expressed support for Turkey's government and urged parties on all sides to avoid destabilizing the country and to follow the rule of law. But Secretary of State John Kerry warned Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu that public suggestions of a U.S. role in the plot were "utterly false" and harmful to relations.

A polarizing figure whose Islamist-rooted ideology lies at odds with supporters of modern Turkey's secular principles, Erdogan said the plotters had tried to attack him in the resort town of Marmaris.

"They bombed places I had departed from right after I was gone," he said. "They probably thought we were still there."

Erdogan's AK Party has long had strained relations with the military, which has a history of mounting coups to defend secularism, although it has not seized power directly since 1980.

Erdogan's conservative religious vision for Turkey's future has also alienated many ordinary citizens who accuse him of authoritarianism. Police used heavy force in 2013 to suppress mass protests demanding more freedom.

However, Erdogan commands the admiration and loyalty of millions of Turks, particularly for raising living standards and restoring order to the economy, which was once beset by regular crises, which grew by an annualized 4.8%.

The violence is likely to hit the tourism industry, which was already suffering from a spate of terrorist bombings, and business confidence is also vulnerable.

Meanwhile, neighboring Greece arrested eight men aboard a Turkish military helicopter which landed in the northern city of Alexandroupolis on Saturday, the Greek police ministry said, adding that they had requested political asylum.

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