208 people martyred during coup attempt: Turkish PM

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has said that Monday a total of 208 people have been martyred and 1,491 people wounded during Friday’s failed military coup attempt.

Yildirim revealed the numbers following the council of ministers meeting at Cankaya Palace in Ankara.

"There are 208 people who have been unfortunately martyred in this coup attempt: 60 of them police officers, 3 of them soldiers and 145 civilians are our hero martyrs," he said

Yildirim added that 7,543 people have been arrested over alleged ties to the failed putsch.

On Friday night, rogue elements of the military attempted to overthrow Turkey’s democratically elected government.

The failed coup is said to have been organized by followers of U.S.-based Fetullah Gulen, who is accused of pursuing a long-running campaign to overthrow the government through supporters within the Turkish state, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.