Leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has accused the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government of laying the groundwork for a July 15 military coup attempt, saying that the brother of a senior AKP official led the abortive coup.
Turkey experienced a military coup attempt on July 15 that killed over 240 people and wounded more than a thousand others. Immediately after the putsch, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government along with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan pinned the blame on the Gülen movement despite the lack of any evidence to that effect.
Speaking to Habertürk TV on Friday, Kılıçdaroğlu said: “The ground for a coup in Turkey was deliberately laid. Mehmet Dişli, the person who led the incident [coup attempt], was brought to General Staff headquarters before completing his service in the TSK [Turkish Armed Forces] by the political will. … The will that kept Mehmet Dişli in General Staff headquarters is the political will that prepared the groundwork for the coup.”
Maj. Mehmet Dişli is the brother of AKP Deputy Chairman Şaban Dişli. Turkish media reports said Mehmet Dişli was detained on accusations of being one of the commanders who organized the coup against the AKP. He is currently under arrest.