Turkish prosecutor's office orders 148 military officers arrested for alleged coup plotting

Turkish police on Wednesday launched an operation, ordered by the Izmir public prosecutor's office, to arrest 148 military personnel for allegedly belonging to the brotherhood of exiled preacher Fethullah Gülen, whom the Turkish government accuses of instigating the failed 2016 coup. 

The operation extends to 47 of the country's 81 provinces, public broadcaster TRT reported. Among the suspects are eight captains, a colonel and a dozen military school officials. 

On February 2, 294 Turkish military and civil servants were arrested in another major operation on suspicion of links to the alleged coup plotters. 

Following the failed coup attempt, whose top military leaders have never publicly confessed their allegiance to Gülen, the Turkish government launched extensive purges in the state administration and education sector, where more than 130,000 employees were dismissed and more than 100,000 people were detained. Around 50,000 people, mostly civilians, were remanded in custody. 

Last December, a court in Ankara sentenced 333 military personnel and four civilians to life imprisonment for their involvement in the uprising, in what continues to be a campaign of government harassment against opposition sectors.