IZMIR, Turkey
Twenty police officers were detained in Turkey early on Tuesday as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged wiretapping which has seen hundreds of police officers detained or removed from their posts in the last few months.
The lastest round was initiated by the chief public prosecutor's office in Izmir after they reportedly received 50 appeals from people claiming to have been wiretapped.
The police carried out concurrent operations after the office in Izmir issued arrest warrants for 32 suspects in 13 Turkish provinces, mainly western port city of Izmir and Istanbul.
The operations follow a December 2013 probe which led to the arrest of several high-profile figures, including the sons of three former government ministers and leading business people.
All those detained in December have been released pending trial.
Prime Minister and President-elect Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government has called the December probe a "coup attempt" by a "parallel structure”.
He claims the Gulen movement, led by US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen, has infiltrated the Turkish state and attempted to overthrow the government.
www.aa.com.tr/en/turkey
