ISTANBUL

A court in Istanbul handed down heavy jail terms to 63 suspects including ex-military students and officers on Friday for taking part in the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey, according to a judicial source.  

The Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, during which 250 people were martyred and nearly 2,200 others injured. 

The suspects were convicted of involvement in the killing of at least six people, including one police officer, and the wounding of 42 others on a highway near Istanbul, said the source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media. 

The court handed down aggravated life sentences to six former high-ranking military officers on charges of murder, being a member of a terrorist organization, and attempting to overthrow the constitutional order. 

Also, the court gave life sentences to 57 ex-military students for attempting to overthrow the constitutional order.