Turkish courts jail 332 people over coup attempt

By Kemal Karadag and Baris Kilic

ANKARA

Turkish courts have finalized 42 cases stemming from last year's defeated coup attempt, sentencing 332 people to jail terms.

After the July 15 coup attempt by the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), Turkish prosecutors across the country launched 100,993 investigations.

So far, verdicts for 502 suspects have been announced by courts and 232 of those have been sentenced to life imprisonment, meaning they will serve at least 24 years in prison.

Some 117 of these received sentences of aggravated life imprisonment, meaning they will serve at least 30 years in prison.

A hundred people were also sentenced to a variety of jail terms ranging from one year two months to 20 years.

The courts also acquitted 113 suspects. Fifty-seven others were released as judges thought there was no case to answer.

Many of those were accused of attempting to overthrow the Turkish government and parliament.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016 that martyred 250 people and injured nearly 2,200 others.

Ankara accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.

In the wake of the putsch attempt, tens of thousands of FETO suspects have been arrested, including many in the armed forces, police, judicial system, education, and business sectors.