Turkish authorities today detained 27 police officers in eight provinces across the country as part of the widening crackdown following a failed coup attempt in July last year. The detentions, centred in the southern province of Adana, aimed to root out followers of the US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara accuses of orchestrating the putsch, and included three police chiefs.<br/><br/>Turkish authorities have detained, sacked or dismissed tens of thousands of people from the police, military, public service, judiciary, and elsewhere since the abortive coup over suspected ties to Gulen's network. Gulen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania since 1999, has denied the charge and condemned the coup. Turks will vote on April 16 on replacing the parliamentary system with the stronger presidency long sought by President Tayyip Erdogan.