Turkey’s currency plunges amid military coup attempt

If the coup fails, Erdogan’s “hand will be strengthened and we’ll see more of his autocratic agenda”, Tol said. The senior official told media sources that all government officials were in charge of their offices.

“The attempted coup has failed”.

As military vehicles rumbled through the streets of Ankara, members of Turkey’s military said Friday night they had seized control of the country, ousting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has dominated the country for more than a decade. The “Peace Council” responded by opening fire on civilians inside of Turkey by rifle, tank, and helicopter leaving dozens wounded throughout the country.

Yildirim called on people to remain in the streets to support the government against coup plotters and appealed for patience. Many protesters descended on the areas where military vehicles were positioned, including two bridges leading from the European side of Istanbul to the Asian side.

At one point, the military group released a statement claiming they had ” fully seized control” of Turkey.

But by early Saturday, Reuters journalists saw around 30 pro-coup soldiers surrender their weapons after being surrounded by armed police in Istanbul’s central Taksim square.

Meanwhile, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim called the military actions in multiple cities an attempted coup.

According to the Anatolia news agency, around 1,800 people, including 750 police officers and 80 soldiers, have been detained as part of a crackdown against Gulen followers in the last two years.

“This is an insurgency against democracy and national will”, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told the nation on live TV late on Friday night.

CNN’s Barbara Starr says that a coup in Turkey would be a diplomatic crisis for USA and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation because Turkey is home to a military base used to stage airstrikes against ISIS and Turkey has received military support from the U.S.

Reports on social media and in local press described tanks in the streets and military planes and helicopters overhead in the capital.

The President also said that a mission to fully cleanse the Turkish military of traitorous elements has begun.

Turkish authorities have accused the preacher of seeking to establish “a state within a state” in Turkey, but his movement insists he is committed to democratic reform and interfaith dialogue.

Martial law and a curfew was imposed in Turkey after a faction of the military attempted a coup.

The Pentagon said there was no impact on operations against Islamic State from the USA air base at Incirlik in Turkey.

World leaders called for calm, with US President Barack Obama and other Western countries urging support for the government which he said had been elected in democratic elections.

Military jets were heard flying over Ankara and Istanbul.

Crowds defied orders to stay indoors, gathering at major squares in Istanbul and Ankara, waving flags and chanting.

“No coup-plotter in history has ever succeeded”, he said. Parliament Speaker Ismail Kahraman said a bomb hit one corner of a public relations building inside the parliament complex, injuring some police officers.

Whatever the outcome, analysts said, the US ally now faces a period of political and economic instability.

In Istanbul, an official at Haydarpasa Numune Hospital said at least 150 people were admitted with wounds but would not comment on whether there were fatalities. However, Erdogan raised doubts about that during his address, saying, “I don’t know what the situation is concerning our chief of military staff”. Emrah Gurel and Cinar Kiper also contributed from Istanbul. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak to the media.