West behind failed Turkey coup bid: Ex-Hezbollah chief

By Hamza Tekin

BEQAA, Lebanon

Former Hezbollah Secretary-General Subhi al-Tufayli accused the U.S. and other western powers of standing behind last Friday’s coup attempt through what is known in Turkey as the "Parallel State".

In an interview with Anadolu Agency, al-Tufayli said the West had "planned the coup in Turkey as it did in Egypt [in 2013]".

He went on to assert that the coup plotters were "not Turks, but invaders in the service of the enemy".

"The West has no consistency," he said. "Ankara is a longstanding NATO member, yet they continue to plot against it."

At least 246 people, including civilians and security personnel, were martyred -- and more than 1,500 injured -- during last week’s putsch attempt.

Al-Tufayli attributed the coup’s failure to the steadfastness of the Turkish people and the awareness of Turkey’s legitimate authorities of the possibility of a coup threat.

"Large segments of the Turkish Armed Forces stood with the people, which contributed to foiling the coup, along with the exposure of the plot a few hours earlier," he said.

"When we first heard news of the coup attempt, we were deeply worried that the battle was lost," the former Hezbollah leader said.

"At one point in the night I had wished I was there [in Turkey], that I might die defending a just cause," he added.

He went on to voice his conviction that the "parallel state" had represented the coup plotters’ "primary tool".

He added, however, that the coup attempt was "definitely an American plot with European participation".

"The U.S. wants to get rid of a man who can say both ‘yes’ and ‘no’," al-Tufayli said in reference to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

He went on to urge Muslims to unite in the face of common enemies.

"Turkey remains in the heart of many Muslims," he said. "Despite the passage of 100 years, they still remember that Turkey was at the center of the Islamic caliphate and the source of the Ottoman Empire."

As for the ongoing arrest in Turkey of suspected members of U.S.-based preacher Fetullah Gulen’s FETO terrorist organization, al-Tufayli expressed his full support for Turkey’s actions against the coup plotters.

"Those who stand behind the coup are now trying to protect their agents by appealing to ‘human rights’," he said.

After covertly supporting the coup bid, he added, "now the West cries over the state of democracy in Turkey".

Gulen’s followers have been accused of attempting to infiltrate Turkey’s vital state institutions -- especially the military, police apparatus and judiciary -- with the aim of creating a "parallel state".

Al-Tufayli concluded by saying that "the U.S. created, supported and armed the Daesh group, which represents the main source of terrorism in the region today".