Turkey’s president reforms military after failed coup

According to state-run Anadolu Agency, the discharged personnel include Col. Ali Yazici, former aide to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan; Lt. Col. Levent Turkkan, former aide to Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar. The latest expulsions followed the dishonourable discharges of 149 admirals and generals – nearly half the military’s entire contingent – along with 1,099 officers and 436 junior officers. The authorities say Fethullah Gulen was behind the army-led coup in which at least 246 people died.

Through Saturday, Erdogan said, 18,699 people have been detained in connection with the coup attempt, and 10,137 have been placed under arrest, meaning they have been charged with criminal acts.

Meanwhile, pro-Erdogan supporters are set to rally in Cologne, Germany on Sunday.

Turkey’s Western allies condemned the attempted couph, but have been rattled by the scale of the resulting crackdown.

A three-month state of emergency has also been declared.

German media said authorities had made a decision to bar Erdogan from addressing a rally via videoconference in the city of Cologne on Sunday due to concerns over public order, prompting an angry response from Turkey’s EU Affairs Minister Omer Celik.

“We are here because our compatriots in Germany advocate democracy and are against the attempted military coup”, Turkey’s sport and youth minister, Akif Cagatay Kilic, who attended the rally, told reporters.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Friday the main air base in capital Ankara and other key military installations in Istanbul would also be shut down.

About 3 million people of Turkish heritage live in Germany.

The new decree also confirmed his announcement that a new national military university would be established within the defence ministry, while military schools and academies would be closed down.

Germany’s highest court rejected a bid Saturday night to reverse local judges’ ruling that a screen at the Cologne event couldn’t be used to show addresses from outside speakers a decision that Turkey says prevented an address by Erdogan.

President Barack Obama denied any USA role in the putsch last week, telling reporters that reports to the contrary are “completely false, unequivocally false”, and that the US and Turkey have a “critical alliance and partnership”.

Dunford’s visit comes at a delicate time for Turkey’s relations with the United States, given Erdogan’s constant demands for Gulen’s extradition.

The UETD itself expects between 30,000 and 50,000 to turn up, including participants from Finland, Britain and Austria.