EDIRNE, Turkey 

Seven people suspected of having links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) were nabbed in northwestern Turkey while they were trying to escape to Greece illegally, security sources said Monday.

The suspects, including a doctor and former judges, were nabbed in the Ipsala district of Edirne, a northwestern Turkish province bordering Greece, said the source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, in which 251 people were martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Turkey 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.

*Writing by Gozde Bayar