A key trial of 224 people accused of participating in Turkey's failed coup attempt three years ago came to a close with 17 top generals handed life sentences.
Those sentenced on Thursday included the
former head of the Turkish air force, Akin Ozturk, who allegedly headed
the "Peace at Home Council", which led the coup attempt on July 15,
2016. He was one of the 17 top former military officials who were given 141 "aggravated" life sentences.
Ozturk, who pleaded not guilty, had been at
the Ankara Akinci Airbase during the time it was used as a command
centre for the coup. The then Chief of General Staff Hulusi Akar
and other high-ranking military officers were kidnapped and held at the
same base during the coup attempt.
Sonmezates - possibly the only general to admit involvement in the coup - was sentenced with 137 aggravated life imprisonment penalties
Since Turkey has abolished the death penalty, aggravated life imprisonment is the heaviest sentence delivered in the country
At Thursday's hearing, 176 people were sentenced to prison with varying terms of punishment, while 35 others have been freed pending trial and 13 people, including Fethullah Gulen, are still wanted
The official charges were violating the constitution, using coercion and violence in an attempt to overthrow parliament and the Turkish government, and killing 251 citizens
The coup attempt led to 251 deaths, many of them unarmed civilians, and injuries to about 2,200 people as tanks and warplanes were used by military personnel to overthrow Erdogan's government.
Turkey accuses exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen and his movement for orchestrating the failed coup. The Gulen movement is a hybrid of religion, business and education with millions of followers worldwide.
Since the deadly July 15 coup bid, Turkey has listed the movement as the Fethullah Terrorist Organisation (FETO)
Commencing in May 2017, the trial concluded on Thursday is the 254th of a total of 289 trials expected to be completed by the end of 2019 dealing with those involved in the coup attempt.
So far nearly 2,000 people, formerly serving in the military, have been sentenced to life imprisonment and up to 1,000 have been handed aggravated life imprisonment, with little chance of early release
Who is Fethullah Gulen?
Fethullah Gülen is an Islamic cleric with an influential force in the Muslim world, known as the Gülen movement. As Stahl reports, his disciples compare him to Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.
His supporters say he encourages tolerance and interfaith dialogue, and above all, he promotes education. His movement has founded numerous charter schools throughout the U.S., and are largely run by Turkish immigrants who are carrying out Gülen teachings
In sermons on the web, Gülen tells his followers, "Studying physics, mathematics, and chemistry is worshipping God." In turn, his supporters have built more than 1,000 schools around the world
But Gülen has never visited them, not even those a short drive away from his Poconos home.
Rather, he speaks to his followers online from his gated retreat.
But then a video surfaced in which he appeared to order his followers to secretly take over key government positions in Turkey
When he initially came to the U.S. in 1999, it was for medical treatment and for the past 19 years, Fethullah Gülen has been leading a reclusive life in the United States, on a 26-acre retreat in the Poconos
The Turkish government considers Gülen and his supporters terrorists
The Turkish Govt accused Gülen of treason, so he decided to stay in the Poconos – even after he was cleared in absentia in 2008.
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