UPDATE - Turkey: Police nab 10 FETO suspects in western Turkey

ADDS OPERATION IN KIRSEHIR

By Halil Ibrahim Sincar, Harun Kaymaz and Serkan Guner

MARDIN, Turkey (AA) - At least 10 people were arrested in western Turkey over alleged links to the group behind last year’s defeated coup attempt, police said on Thursday.

Police in the Bilecik province arrested the suspects over their links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO).

Separately, Turkish police have launched a new wave of operations against FETO, a police source said Thursday.

Prosecutors in the southeastern province of Mardin issued arrest warrants for 25 army officers over their links to FETO.

Police launched simultaneous operations, coordinated from Mardin and held in 13 Turkish provinces including Istanbul, Ankara, Malatya, Adana, and Konya as well as in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), said the source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The operation is still ongoing, the source added.

Also, three former health ministry officials were arrested over alleged links to FETO in Turkey’s central Kirsehir province, police said on Thursday.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also 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.