Istanbul police launched an operation on Wednesday to capture 333 more soldiers, most of them on active duty, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported. They are suspected of having links to US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen. Turkey’s government has claimed the cleric and his network of followers orchestrated last year’s failed coup, DW reported. The state-run news agency reported that the civilian suspects are accused of acting as so-called “secret imams,” who allegedly directed Gulen allies within the military. More than 50,000 people have been jailed pending trial as part of Ankara’s massive post-coup purge. An additional 120,000 people have been fired or suspended from the military, police and bureaucracy for suspected ties to the Gulen movement.
