MOSCOW (Sputnik) — According to the Hurriyet Daily News, apart from the Istanbul-based operation, searches for the personnel took place in four provinces, including the capital of Ankara and the Central Anatolian province of Eskisehir. The detainees were taken to the police stations at Istanbul’s Vatan Avenue to give testimony, the media outlet added.
The Istanbul chief prosecutor’s office also issued warrants for detention of another 17 personnel working for the Buyukcekmece courthouse as a part of the investigation into the attempted coup.
Ankara has accused Gulen and his followers of playing a key role in the mid-July attempted coup, which claimed the lives of over 240 people. Since the failed coup, Turkey has jailed more than 10,000 people and suspended more than 50,000 judges, civil servants, and educators under a state of emergency, in which expressing ideas similar to those of Gulen is considered a crime.