Turkish police arrest 56 FETO-linked terror suspects

ANKARA

Turkish police on Tuesday arrested 56 suspects nationwide for their suspected links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup, security sources said.

The arrests came after prosecutors in the capital Ankara issued arrest warrants for 79 suspects. Police conducted simultaneous raids in 19 provinces and arrested 56 suspects.

The suspects were accused of financing the terror group.

A hunt for the remaining suspects is underway.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup attempt of July 15, 2016, which left 251 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.

*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz