UPDATE - Turkey launches police operations against FETO

By Halil Demir

*UPDATED WITH ARRESTED SUSPECTS

ISTANBUL (AA) – Turkish police early Wednesday launched simultaneous operations in 13 provinces to take 40 suspected members of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) into custody, said police sources.

Istanbul anti-smuggling police teams carried out operations in line with information provided by confessed members of FETO seeking leniency, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking with the media.

The operations are still ongoing in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa, Konya, Kocaeli, Diyarbakir, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Kirsehir, Ordu, Usak and Hakkari, with some already detained.

Separately, 26 of 32 suspects were arrested Wednesday over links to FETO, security sources said.

Warrants were issued by the Istanbul chief public prosecutor early Wednesday for the 32 suspects, including high-ranking police officers, according to the security source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media.

The suspects are located in seven provinces across the country, including Istanbul, Gaziantep, Kastamonu, Erzurum, Kayseri, Osmaniye and Ankara.

Led by U.S.-based Fetullah Gulen, FETO is accused of orchestrating the July 15 coup plot in Turkey as well as being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.

The July 15 defeated coup left 248 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.