Over 65 FETO suspects arrested across Turkey

By Omer Ertugrul

YOZGAT, Turkey

Dozens of Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) suspects have been held across Turkey, according to security sources on Thursday.

In central Yozgat province, police arrested 23 on-duty soldiers after the province’s Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issued arrest warrants for 26 people for their alleged involvement in the FETO network.

Police continues to search for the remaining three suspects, who are civilian members of the terror group.

Moreover, 28 FETO suspects, including on-duty soldiers, were arrested during a Gaziantep-based operation in 13 provinces and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

In another operation, counterterrorism police in central Kayseri province arrested five people for allegedly using the ByLock messaging app, an encrypted smart phone app used by the FETO members before and during the defeated coup in July 2016.

Separately, police arrested 13 people, including seven women from Corum, Eskisehir and four more provinces for using the encrypted app.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.

*Adsiz Gunebakan from Gaziantep, Ramazan Kaya from Kayseri, Emrah Yasar from Eskisehir and Gazi Nogay from Corum contributed to the story