Last night’s attempted military coup in Turkey appears to be faltering – though this is a very fast-changing situation – as the country’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, told the country early this morning that his government was back in charge.
It follows a night of total chaos and violence after the Turkish prime minister, Binali Yildirim, confirmed an “illegal attempt to seize power” by “part of the military”.
Turkey’s EU minister, Omer Celik, is quoted as saying that the government has the coup situation “90% under control”, but that some military commanders are still being held hostage by plotters.
(Gokhan Tan/Getty Images)
There were many reports of a nation-wide shutdown of social media, with multiple people claiming Turkish citizens had been unable to access Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, among other platforms.
Since he was unable to appear on state television, Erdogan was forced to communicate with CNN Turk via mobile video linkup using FaceTime. The CNN news presenter held her phone up to the camera whilst speaking to the President.
Erdogan vows to take back leadership in #Turkey in a video call on CNN Turk pic.twitter.com/3K5j91G2mh
— Suhail AlGhazi (@putintintin1) July 15, 2016
He is said to now be back in the capital, and called on the public to protest in public squares and airports, in direction contradiction to the military’s orders.
Images shared on social media showed fierce fighting breaking out on the streets of Istanbul and Ankara throughout the night. Explosions were heard at the presidential palace in Ankara, as civilians fought tanks on the streets and tried to block the vehicles’ paths.
Defiant middle aged men take on tank during attempted military coup in Turkey https://t.co/zw4tPFUw2w
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) July 16, 2016
https://twitter.com/CilliandeBurca/status/754101763087687680
RT @ErickFernandez: Footage of a car getting crushed by a tank on the street. #Turkeypic.twitter.com/LPWZ9y26gq
— DJ Steph Floss (@djstephfloss) July 15, 2016
Some 90 more people are believed to have been killed, including 41 police officers, 47 civilians and two soldiers.
According to the Guardian, 16 people involved in the coup attempt were killed by military police command, while 250 others arrested. Around 1,563 members of the armed forces have been arrested, among them 29 colonels and five generals.
Watch: Protesters near Istanbul's Ataturk airport climb onto a tank, chanting the name of the Turkish President https://t.co/osnF261csa
— Sky News (@SkyNews) July 15, 2016
Turkey's acting army chief says coup attempt has failed and those who took part will be punished https://t.co/sHVbkjwkA8
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) July 16, 2016
There were many delayed, cancelled and diverted flights to and from Turkey last night, and it’s still unclear whether normal operations have resumed.
https://twitter.com/AnupKaphle/status/754098353168932864
The Irish Department of Foreign Affairs issued a travel warning last night.
We are aware of situation in Turkey. See updated travel advice here: https://t.co/z11g3pt4Bn. Call 01 408 2000 if you have any concerns
— Irish Foreign Ministry (@dfatirl) July 15, 2016
The warning reads:
“We are advising Irish citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Turkey at this time.
“The Department of Foreign Affairs and our embassy in Ankara are monitoring the evolving situation in Ankara and Istanbul where a heightened security presence and some incidents of violence are reported.
“The situation is unclear, and Irish citizens considering travel to Turkey are advised to delay travel until the situation becomes clearer.”
Her.ie reader Julie-Ann Sherlock compiled this consular information for Irish citizens that might be caught up in the turmoil in Turkey.
