Speaking at a news conference in Ankara, Cavusoglu said that 208 Foreign Ministry employees have been recalled, of whom 32 failed to return, the Anadolu news agency reported. He specified that two personnel based in Bangladesh had fled to the United States.
“Some of them escaped by sea, some of them escaped by air. Some of them we have not confirmed their whereabouts. We will locate them shortly,” the minister said.
On July 15, the Turkish authorities said that an attempted coup was taking place in the country, which was suppressed the next day. Over 13,000 people have been detained in connection with the coup. Ankara believes that Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen and his supporters were seeking to overthrow the current government. The Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETO)/Parallel State Structure (PDY), made up of Gulen's supporters, is designated a terrorist organization by Ankara.
