Turkey to arrest 228 for links to FETO terror group

Turkish prosecutors investigating the military and justice ministry on Tuesday ordered the arrest of 228 people over suspected links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), a group behind 2016 coup attempt, Anadolu Agency reported.

The suspects, in the capital Ankara, are part of a group of 71 FETO members, including 33 active-duty officials, who infiltrated the Justice Ministry, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

In a separate operation, prosecutors in Izmir province on Turkey’s Aegean coast, issued arrest warrants for 101 on-duty sergeants and 56 former soldiers who either retired, resigned or were expelled.

The warrants were issued after the suspects were found to have communicated with members of the terror group by payphone.

It said the operation is stretched to 43 provinces across Turkey.

FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen, orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016 which left 251 people killed and nearly 2,200 injured.

FETO is behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.