Obama discusses alleged coup cleric with Erdogan

In addition, 1,500 finance ministry employees were fired, 257 people working at the prime minister’s office were sacked and 492 staffers at the Directorate of Religious Affairs were dismissed, including clerics, preachers and religious teachers.

In Brussels Monday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said he supported bringing perpetrators of the attempted coup in Turkey to justice, but warned the government against going “too far” while restoring order in the country. Dozens of others were still being questioned. “This government doesn’t want to listen to others”.

On Tuesday, foreign media were taken on a tour of government buildings that were targeted by F-16 air strikes, including the headquarters of the Turkish special forces police where 47 officers were killed.

He called the putsch attempt “treason, a betrayal of the Turkish nation”.

President Barack Obama pledged USA support for the democratically elected government of Turkey while urging embattled Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to respect civil liberties as he responds to the coup attempt that nearly forced him from power. Gulen has denied any knowledge of the failed coup.

Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus told reporters that 9,322 people were under legal proceedings in relation to the attempted coup. They follow earlier aggressive moves by Erdogan’s administration against Gulen loyalists in the government, police and judiciary following corruption probes targeting Erdogan associates and family members in late 2013 – prosecutions the government says were orchestrated by Gulen.

“On the grounds of suspicion, he can be easily extradited”. We would like to see cooperation from the United States authorities on this issue.

President Tayyip Erdogan has denounced the coup bid, which left more than 300 dead on all sides, as a treacherous bid to oust him from power devised from the United States compound of his arch-enemy Fethullah Gulen.

USA officials said they hadn’t determined whether a formal extradition request was among the documents transmitted by Turkey, adding if it wasn’t they expect such a request soon. Akin Ozturk, alleged to be the ringleader of the July 15 uprising, and General Adem Hududi, commander of Turkey’s 2nd Army, which is in charge of countering possible threats to Turkey from Syria, Iran and Iraq. He has denied any involvement in the abortive coup.

A thousand pro-government demonstrators gathered for a rally in Istanbul Tuesday, waving flags and chanting slogans and songs praising Erdogan.

But in the aftermath of the coup, Erdogan has repeatedly called for parliament to consider his supporters’ demands to apply the death penalty for the plotters.

“We are not leaving these squares, ” said Durhan Yilmiz, an Istanbul municipality worker.

He told CNN his life had been in grave danger. “If I stayed (in Marmaris) 10, 15 minutes more, I would either have been killed or kidnapped and taken away by them”.

Turkey hasn’t executed anyone since 1984, and capital punishment was legally abolished in 2004 as part of Turkey’s bid to join the European Union. Several European officials have said such a move would be the end of Turkey’s attempts to join.

Addressing hundreds of supporters outside his Istanbul residence early Tuesday, Erdogan responded to calls for the reintroduction of the death penalty with the simple statement: “You can not put aside the people’s demands”.

“There also is due process to which people who live in the United States are entitled to”, he said.

“The types of arrests and roundups that you cite have not gone unnoticed by us”, he said.

In an intriguing twist, a Turkish official said two Turkish pilots who played a role in the downing of a Russian plane in November that led to a crisis in ties between Moscow and Ankara are in custody over the failed coup. They may also include new evidence that has emerged from the current investigation.

The reclusive cleric said in an interview at his Pennsylvania compound that he had no concerns about the extradition request.

The Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), a right-wing grouping and the smallest of the three opposition parties represented in parliament, said it would back the government if it decides to restore the death penalty.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, meanwhile, reflected the triumphant mood of authorities. The military said 104 coup plotters were killed.

The Turkish government cut power to the base as well as all access after it learned that aerial tankers from the base had been used for air-to-air refueling for the rebel air force Friday and Saturday.