Cabinet moves to extend state of emergency for 3 months

By Emin Avundukluoglu

ANKARA

Turkey’s Cabinet has moved to extend the nation’s state of emergency for three more months, the country’s deputy prime minister said Monday night.

Following an evening Cabinet meeting, Numan Kurtulmus said that the ministers discussed the National Security Council's recommendation that the country's ongoing state of emergency be extended.

"The motion which will be submitted to parliament on the extension of state of emergency for three months as of April 19, 2017 at 1.00 a.m. [2200GMT Tuesday] was signed by the Council of Ministers," said Kurtulmus.

The National Security Council, which convened in Ankara earlier in the evening under the chairmanship of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, advised extension of the ongoing state of emergency "in an attempt to provide the continuance of measures aimed at securing the rights and freedoms of citizens."

After last summer’s deadly coup attempt blamed on the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), which martyred 249 people and injured some 2,200 others, Turkey declared a state of emergency on July 20.

According to the Turkish constitution, a state of emergency can be declared for a maximum period of six months.

To enact the state of emergency, the government must see serious indications of widespread violence that could interfere with Turkey's democratic environment or its citizens' basic rights and freedoms as established by the Constitution.