UPDATE - Turkey arrests 43 in major FETO terror probe

ADDS DETAILS OF SEPARATE ARRESTS IN NORTHWESTERN TURKEY

By Serdar Acil, Cemil Murat Budak, and Hakan Mehmet Sahin

ANKARA/EDIRNE, Turkey (AA) – At least 43 people have been arrested after prosecutors in Turkey issued warrants for 100 people suspected of having links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), judicial authorities said on Tuesday.

The suspects are believed to be senior FETO operatives who were part of the terror group’s efforts to infiltrate Turkey’s Gendarmerie General Command, according to a statement by the Ankara public prosecutor’s office.

The individuals were identified through joint operations by the Turkish police and National Intelligence Organization (MIT).

Raids in 40 different provinces and the capital Ankara have led to the arrests of 43 suspects so far, the statement added.

In a separate operation not connected to the major FETO probe, Turkish forces arrested four suspects in the northwestern Edirne province.

The FETO suspects, who include a former prosecutor, were caught near the town of Karpuzlu in Ipsala district while trying to flee to Greece, according to security sources.

FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 2016 in Turkey, in which 251 people were killed and 2,734 injured.

The Turkish government 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 Ahmet Gencturk and Jeyhun Aliyev in Ankara