MALATYA, Turkey
An investigation has begun into death threats against the Turkish president and his family, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday, referring to the latest allegations of an assassination attempt on his daughter.
Erdogan gave a speech during his attendance of a series of inauguration ceremonies in Turkey’s central east province of Malatya. Several non-governmental organizations also participated in the ceremonies.
“I said that we -- including my family members and I -- received death threats about a week ago in Bursa and the threats have become apparent with regards to my daughter,” Erdogan said.
The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation into the allegations of an assassination attempt on the Turkish president's daughter.
"We are continuing on our way in a determined manner. We are not going to stop our efforts,” Erdogan said.
Various Turkish media outlets, including Star and Aksam newspapers, reported Friday that an assassination attempt targeting Sumeyye Erdogan was believed to have been in preparation, citing intelligence sources.
According to the dailies, the alleged assassination was planned to take place before parliamentary elections on June 7, 2015.
The president also directly and harshly criticized a social media whistleblower who uses an anonymous Twitter account called Fuat Avni saying, “ if you have courage and if you are a real man, do not use a nickname. You are a member of a terrorist organization (referring to the parallel state), we know that. That is why you use a code name.”
The anonymous Twitter account allegedly belongs to member of the parallel state. The account was banned last year after a court decision.
The "parallel state" is an alleged group of Turkish bureaucrats and senior officials embedded in the country's institutions, including the judiciary and the police, which is reportedly trying to undermine the Turkish government.
The government alleges that the clandestine network, which it claims is conspiring to overthrow the elected Turkish government, is run by the U.S.-based preacher Fethullah Gulen.
Turkey wants Gulen to be extradited from the U.S., where he has lived since 1999. An Istanbul criminal court issued an arrest warrant for Fethullah Gulen in December 2014.
