16 July 2016•Update: 17 July 2016
By Cankut Tasda
ANKARA
The final group of pro-coup Turkish military personnel surrendered Saturday afternoon, a security source said.
Around 150 plotters, who are suspected of being members of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization, had been holding out at the headquarters of the General Staff and the nearby gendarmerie compound in central Ankara.
Three prosecutors went to the headquarters to receive the surrender of the group, which included 13 high-ranking naval officers, the source said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.
Two buses carried senior officers away while other ranks, many wearing just their underwear, were put on three buses to be taken to a sports hall in Baskent on the western edge of the capital.
Riot police guarded the General Staff headquarters, which had been one of the focal points of Friday night’s coup attempt and where senior officers who refused to participate were held, including the Chief of the General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar.
The source said counter-terrorism officers would make detailed search of the compound, where earlier Saturday around 700 coup troops surrendered to police
The government has said the coup bid was organized by followers of U.S.-based preacher Fetullah Gulen, who is accused of a long-standing campaign to overthrow the government through supporters within the Turkish state, particularly the military, police and judiciary.
