ANKARA
Turkey’s top security body will meet later on Thursday to examine issues such as recent violence from Kurdish separatists and the country’s so-called ‘parallel state’ structure.
The situation in Kobani, the war-torn Syrian town bordering Turkey, will also be on the agenda.
The National Security Council, which meets every two months, will be chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the first time.
In earlier remarks, Erdogan said the ‘parallel state’ could be listed in Turkey's National Security Policy document, commonly known as the ‘Red Book’.
The Red Book contains a list of threats to the Turkish state.
If listed, this would mean that the network – allegedly maintained by supporters of U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen – would become an issue of national security.
The ruling AK Party government had originally removed religious groups from the Red Book in 2010.
The Turkish government now claims that supporters of the Gulen movement have infiltrated the state and are attempting to overthrow the government.
Thursday's meeting will also discuss latest attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, PKK, as well as the current situation regarding the Kurdish ‘solution process.’
PKK attacks have included the killing of three Turkish soldiers in the southeastern province of Hakkari last week, and the hijacking of about 400 kilograms of explosives from a private coal mine in the southeastern Sirnak province on Monday.
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