ISTANBUL

A prosecutor in Istanbul on Tuesday issued arrest warrants against 35 media workers accused of supporting the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) through their work and on social media, an official said.

Istanbul Deputy Chief Public Prosecutor Ismail Ucar and Murat Caglak, a prosecutor from the terrorism and organized crime bureau, said the suspects were followers of FETO, which is said to have carried out the July 15 attempted coup.

According to a criminal justice official, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media, nine of the suspects were later arrested in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmit. Eighteen are believed to have fled Turkey and the remaining eight are being hunted.

Reporting by Muhammed Enes Can : Writing by Fatma Bulbul