Turkey indicts 86 suspects on terror plot
Law enforcer: Chief Prosecutor Aykut Cengiz Engin talking during a press meeting in front of the court in Istanbul yesterday.Picture: Reuters
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
A TOP prosecutor announced a long-awaited indictment yesterday against 86 people suspected of involvement in a coup plot against Turkey's Islamist-rooted government.
The document is the first to emerge from a year-long investigation into an alleged ultra-nationalist network dubbed "Ergenekon".
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), facing legal action that could lead to it being outlawed, has been accused of using the probe to silence its opponents.
The 2,455-page indictment includes charges of creating an "armed terrorist organisation", using violence to unseat the government and provoking an armed uprising, Istanbul chief prosecutor Aykut Cengiz Engin told a news conference.
The indictment drawn up by three prosecutors also accuses defendants of instigating attacks including the 2006 bombing of a pro-secular newspaper and an armed attack on a top court the same year that killed a senior judge, Engin said.
"The terrorist organisation mentioned in the indictment is not a separatist or ideological organisation in the classic sense," Engin said.
He said 48 of the 86 suspects indicted were in custody, but did not say who they were and which charges each faced.
Engin said he was legally barred from giving further details on the case, as the indictment must be approved by the Istanbul criminal court to which it was sent before the trial can proceed.
The prosecutor says the charge sheet does not include 20 other suspects, including two retired four-star generals, who were detained earlier this month as part of the investigation.
A second indictment will be prepared against these latest suspects once prosecutors complete their investigation, Engin said.AFP
The document is the first to emerge from a year-long investigation into an alleged ultra-nationalist network dubbed "Ergenekon".
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), facing legal action that could lead to it being outlawed, has been accused of using the probe to silence its opponents.
The 2,455-page indictment includes charges of creating an "armed terrorist organisation", using violence to unseat the government and provoking an armed uprising, Istanbul chief prosecutor Aykut Cengiz Engin told a news conference.
The indictment drawn up by three prosecutors also accuses defendants of instigating attacks including the 2006 bombing of a pro-secular newspaper and an armed attack on a top court the same year that killed a senior judge, Engin said.
"The terrorist organisation mentioned in the indictment is not a separatist or ideological organisation in the classic sense," Engin said.
He said 48 of the 86 suspects indicted were in custody, but did not say who they were and which charges each faced.
Engin said he was legally barred from giving further details on the case, as the indictment must be approved by the Istanbul criminal court to which it was sent before the trial can proceed.
The prosecutor says the charge sheet does not include 20 other suspects, including two retired four-star generals, who were detained earlier this month as part of the investigation.
A second indictment will be prepared against these latest suspects once prosecutors complete their investigation, Engin said.AFP
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