Istanbul: Turkish police detained 73 academics in dawn raids on Friday targeting followers of US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, accused by Ankara of orchestrating an attempted coup in July, state-run news agency Anadolu reported.
Some 110,000 people have been sacked or suspended in the civil service, army and judiciary and 36,000 people jailed pending trial in the investigation of the failed putsch, in which over 240 people were killed. Gulen denies involvement.
Istanbul prosecutors issued detention warrants for 103 teaching staff accused of "membership of an armed terror group" in the investigation targeting the city's Yildiz Technical University, the agency said.
Police searched the academics' homes and offices and the suspects were taken to hospital for routine health checks and then to Istanbul police headquarters, the agency reported.
Some were said to have been users of a smartphone messaging app called ByLock, which Ankara says Gulen's followers began using in 2014.
Judicial authorities on Thursday dismissed 203 judges and prosecutors over links to what Ankara terms the "Gulenist Terror Group".
Human rights groups and some Western allies have voiced concern at the scope of the purges, fearing President Tayyip Erdogan is using the coup as a pretext to curtail dissent.
Some 110,000 people have been sacked or suspended in the civil service, army and judiciary and 36,000 people jailed pending trial in the investigation of the failed putsch, in which over 240 people were killed. Gulen denies involvement.
Istanbul prosecutors issued detention warrants for 103 teaching staff accused of "membership of an armed terror group" in the investigation targeting the city's Yildiz Technical University, the agency said.
Some were said to have been users of a smartphone messaging app called ByLock, which Ankara says Gulen's followers began using in 2014.
Advertisement
Human rights groups and some Western allies have voiced concern at the scope of the purges, fearing President Tayyip Erdogan is using the coup as a pretext to curtail dissent.
© Thomson Reuters 2016
Advertisement
COMMENTS
Advertisement
"Spirit Of United Nations Dead In Gaza": Turkey's Erdogan After Deadly Israeli Strikes Turkey Providing Documents Against Israel For Genocide Case, Says Erdogan Video: Turkish MP Suffers Heart Attack Following Strong Words Against Israel Nurse Raped, Killed On Way Home, Body Found 9 Days Later In UP "Don't Expect Anything From Me": Kolkata Hospital's New Principal Loses Cool This US City Has Been Declared America's Least Desirable, Survey Finds Gaza Ceasefire Talks Underway In Qatar As Deaths Top 40,000 Trump To Hold Press Conference, His Campaign Adds Senior Advisers Left, BJP, Creating Unrest: Mamata Banerjee On Midnight Attack At Hospital Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.