Turkey: 158 Military Personnel Arrested for Alleged Gülen Links

Turkish police have arrested 158 military personnel suspected of having links to the organization of Fethullah Gülen, whom Ankara accuses of orchestrating the 2016 coup attempt.

The arrests took place in 43 of Turkey's 81 provinces, including Istanbul and Izmir, according to the state news agency Anadolu. These arrests add to approximately 50 others that occurred in late May.

Additionally, the Istanbul prosecutor's office announced that 18 military personnel are still wanted. The arrests mainly concern the land forces.

Ankara accuses Gülen's followers of infiltrating Turkish institutions, such as the judiciary, armed forces, police, and education, with the aim of creating a 'parallel state'.

Nearly 26,000 people have been arrested for participating in the Gülenist movement after the failed coup attempt in 2016, and more than 9,000 have been imprisoned, according to Turkish justice officials.

Fethullah Gülen, who died in late October in the United States, was once a close ally of President Erdoğan before becoming his sworn enemy.