Turkish police arrest 45 FETO-linked terror suspects

Turkish security forces on Tuesday arrested 45 suspects, including serving soldiers, for their suspected links to Fetullah Terrorist Organisation (FETO), the group behind the 2016 coup attempt, a security source said.

Earlier, the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in the capital Ankara issued arrest warrants for 64 people, it said in a statement.

The prosecutor office issued arrest warrants for another 34 suspects on charges of “being a member of an armed terrorist organisation."

The suspects were sought for allegedly using ByLock, an encrypted cellphone application used by coup plotters.

Following the warrants, the counter-terrorism department of police held 45 suspects, said the source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The police continue operations to arrest the remains suspects.

The FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people dead 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.