A Turkish court has annulled arrest warrants against 102 military officers charged with an alleged 2003 coup plot. The officers – who include 25 generals and admirals – were indicted in July. All were accused of involvement in plotting a military takeover, in an operation codenamed sledgehammer. In all, 196 people were charged in July over the alleged plot. Some had been arrested in February and then released. The indictment says the alleged conspiracy was drawn up in 2003 at the Istanbul base of the First Army, shortly after the governing AK Party came to power. The alleged plot reportedly involved plans to bomb mosques and provoke tensions with Greece, in order to spark political chaos and justify a military takeover. The military say it was only a contingency plan based on scenarios of political unrest. The case is the latest in a series involving alleged plots by Turkey's military and secular establishment against the government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
News On AIR | August 7, 2010 7:26 PM
Turkish court annuls arrest armymen allegedly involved in 2003 coup