Friday, July 15, 2016

Martial law in Turkey takes Erdogan's government by surprise

Oliver Tempest writes for Asia Times,
An apparent attempted coup by elements in the Turkish Armed Forces rocked Turkey unexpectedly late on Friday evening, affecting the country’s two main cities, Ankara and Istanbul.

Streets were closed as were the bridges across the Bosphorus in Istanbul and Istanbul and Ankara airports. Turkey’s state radio and television went off the air for three hours. But other broadcasters continued, though their output suggested that they were as confused as anyone else about the course of events in the country.

Around midnight, an announcement on Turkish State Radio and Television said that the Turkish Armed Forces had taken over and that a body calling itself “The Peace in the Country Council” had taken over the government and declared martial law.

...Erdogan rallies supporters

TV stations showed the president appealing from a cell phone on FaceTime to the people to go into the streets and squares and demonstrate on behalf of democracy. The president is believed to be staying on holiday on the coast of Western Turkey. There was no explanation for the apparent absence of normal presidential communications support.

“I appeal to the leaders of all political parties who believe in democracy to support democracy,” Erdogan said. Using FaceTime he told reporters that he had not faced any attempt to restrain him so far.

Compared to Turkey’s military coups in 1960 and 1980, today’s attempted takeover looks relatively amateurish, suggesting that it is probably led by a group of junior officers rather than the top generals. A statement from the government news agency Anatolia says that General Hulusi Akar, the chief of general staff, is being held hostage by other officers. There was no sign that a news blackout, traditionally a feature of a successful Turkish military coup, had been imposed and TV channels and websites continued to discuss the situation.

Under these circumstances the prospects of the coup-makers’ ability to take control of the country looks highly doubtful and might depend on the use of wide-scale force — something which would almost certainly be fatal to their chances of success.
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