Turkish PM slams ‘revengeful acts’ against coup plotters

ANKARA

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim criticized the acts of violence committed against the military personnel involved in Friday's failed coup attempt.

Yildirim's remarks came Tuesday at a joint news conference following a meeting with Kemal Kilicdaroglu, chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party, CHP, in Ankara.

“Turkey is a state of law. Everything will be made right within law, and wrongdoers [putschists] will be surrendered to justice.

"Nobody can resort to physical violence, and seek revenge. This is totally unacceptable in a state of law,” Yildirim said, adding that such “agitators” should be “responded to in the necessary manner.”

The premier went on to say that the “necessary intervention” was being made regarding the videos of such acts circulating on social media, and all unlawful acts would be responded to in the harshest manner.

“Today is the day we need to boost unity and brotherhood,” he said.

Kilicdaroglu said he shared Yildirim's concerns about such acts.

“I especially made it clear that the acts of violence committed only against the privates and petty officers – who were just following orders -- were not justified and must be investigated.

"It is our duty to release the tension in the society,” the opposition party leader said.

Yildirim and Kilicdaroglu's meeting at the Cankaya Palace in Ankara was requested by Kilicdaroglu over a phone call on Monday and lasted for about 50 minutes.

Yildirim later held a separate meeting on Tuesday with Devlet Bahceli chairman of the Nationalist Movement Party, MHP, at the Cankaya Palace in Ankara. The meeting was requested by Bahceli and lasted for about 40 minutes. .

Speaking during a joint news conference with Yildirim after the meeting, Bahceli said he told the prime minister that MHP will stand by the government's "efforts to annihilate the all elements of the coup" and "support the government's all assessments to not make such attempts happen in the future".

"We have something to do from now on. We hopefully will do it within the next days. Both separatist terror and coup attempts will be removed from occupying the people's agenda," Yildirim said at a joint news conference.

The deadly coup attempt occurred late on Friday when rogue elements of the Turkish military tried to overthrow the country's democratically elected government.

At least 208 people, including members of the security forces and civilians, were martyred in Istanbul and Ankara and nearly 1,500 others wounded as they protested against the coup.

The government has said the attempted coup was organized by followers of U.S.-based preacher Fetullah Gulen, who is accused of a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through supporters within the Turkish state, particularly the military, police and judiciary, forming the so-called parallel state.