Failed coup: Turkey removes 8000 police officers from posts

Up to 8000 Turkey police officers have been removed from their posts in suspicion of being linked to Friday’s failed coup.

Some thousands of armed forces were rounded up on Sunday, after President Erdogan promised those responsible would pay a heavy price.

More than 290 people have been killed after Friday’s violence, and raids continue on suspected coup plotters with special forces detaining four high-ranking generals at the Turkish Air Force Academy.

The man accused by Ankara of being behind the coup, believes there was another reason for the unrest.

According to a Turkish cleric,Fethullah Gülen, “The important political leaders who are supposed to be taken under custody in the military coup, were not touched neither were they pursued. Empty buildings were bombed, people fired on innocent civilians, tanks positioned in strategic places did nothing. If you look at this big picture, this is not an authentic coup”.

In light of the mass detentions, Europe and the US have expressed concern that Turkey is abandoning the rule of law. They are urging Ankara not to take excessive measures when bringing the coup plotters to justice.