Turkey: Defense chief hails jail terms for FETO members

By Sarp Ozer

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey’s defense minister lauded the heavy jail terms handed down to the top putschists of the 2016 defeated coup Thursday.

"These traitors [who infiltrated into the general staff personnel] got punishment that they deserved by the Turkish justice," Hulusi Akar said in a military graduation ceremony in the capital Ankara on Thursday.

Nearly three years on, 17 top coup plotters on Thursday each received 141 aggravated life sentences for their involvement in the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey.

The Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Turkey 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.