Erdogan DEMANDS That The US Extradites Cleric Gulen After Blaming Him For The Coup

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ISTANBUL – Turkey’s government defeated a coup attempt by renegade officers who pummeled government and security institutions overnight with fighter jets, reasserting control Saturday after hours of clashes that killed at least 265 people and plunged the already troubled country into further uncertainty.

The acting military chief, Gen. Umit Dundar, said on TV that more than 100 coup plotters are dead and an additional 161 people – including civilians and police officers – were killed as ordinary Turks poured into the streets to confront tanks amid pitched battles in urban areas.At least 1,440 were wounded, officials said.

“The situation is completely under control,” Prime Minister Benali Yildirim announced early Saturday afternoon, adding that more than 2,800 members of the military have been arrested and calling the attempt “a dark stain for Turkish democracy.”

The move by rogue officers and their supporters was the most significant challenge to the country’s stability in decades, and it raised fears that a close U.S. ally and NATO member could be destined for a prolonged period of civil strife.

In a speech to his supporters in Istanbul, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed the coup attempt on Fethullah Gulen, a Muslim cleric in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania, and called on the United States to extradite him. Gulen’s followers in Turkey have denied it was behind the attempted overthrow of the government.

By Saturday morning, Turkish officials said the government had clawed back control from the coup plotters, whom Dundar described as coming mainly from the air force, military police and armored units. Government forces by midday had closed in on the army headquarters in the capital, Ankara, where at least 150 rebel troops were holed up, officials said.

Some pro-government military commanders were still being held hostage by rebel officers, said Omer Celik, Turkey’s minister for EU affairs, but the circumstances surrounding their captivity remained unclear.

The Interior Ministry also reported that five generals and 29 colonels had been removed from their posts.

A U.S. defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing operations, said Saturday morning that the coup attempt led the United States to boost its force protection levels on bases in Turkey to “condition Delta,” its highest level. It is typically used when there is an ongoing terrorist attack.

The official also said the State Department has not requested reinforcement of its diplomatic facilities or to fly any Americans out of the country. But U.S. commercial aircraft were barred from flying into or out of Turkey, according to a statement issued Saturday by the Federal Aviation Administration.

The U.S. Embassy in Ankara warned Americans to stay away from the Incirlik Air Base in Adana, which was sealed off by local authorities, who also cut power to the base.

In Washington, Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said Saturday, “The Turkish government has closed its airspace to military aircraft, and as a result air operations at Incirlik Air Base have been halted at this time.”

Cook added in the statement, “U.S. facilities at Incirlik are operating on internal power sources and a loss of commercial power to the base has not affected base operations.”

In addition to the Turkish air force, Incirlik is home to the U.S. Air Force’s 39th Air Base Wing and about 1,000 U.S. personnel, who fly A-10 and F-16 attack planes used in missions over Syria and Iraq in the fight against Islamic State militants. The base is a NATO site.

Cook said U.S. Central Command is “adjusting flight operations” to minimize the effects on the campaign against the Islamic State.

Some of those involved in the coup attempt appear to have fled as the plot fell apart. On Saturday, Greece announced that a Turkish military helicopter issued a distress signal and made an emergency landing at Alexandroupoli’s airport. Greece detained eight men aboard, who requested political asylum. Turkey has requested their extradition.

In Istanbul, by early afternoon, the bridges across the Bosporus were reopened and traffic began to move again after a night of gunfire, explosions and violent confrontations on the spans and in the main squares.

Small groups of residents gathered on corners and debated in hushed tones, and shelves in many local shops were completely empty after a late-night rush to stock up on food and water.

The U.S. Embassy warned citizens against heading to the airport amid reports of ongoing sporadic gunfire. American commercial aircraft were barred from flying into or out of Turkey, according to a statement issued Saturday by the Federal Aviation Administration.

The night before, scores of Turkish citizens had flooded the streets of Istanbul and Ankara to confront the tanks rumbling into their cities.

(c) 2016, The Washington Post ยท Erin Cunningham, Liz Sly, Zeynep Karatas

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