Twenty-five university students have been held in police custody at the İstanbul Police Station for two days, although the reason for their detention remains unclear, Bold Medya has reported.
The students, all male and aged between 18 and 20, are freshmen. The students were reportedly brought to İstanbul after having been detained in various cities across Turkey.
The questioning of the students will reportedly begin on Monday.
Under Turkish law, a citizen must be informed of the reason for their detention, although this right has apparently not been extended to the 25 students.
As part of a government-led crackdown following a failed coup in 2016, nearly 80,000 people have been arrested or put in pre-trial detention in Turkey under the pretext of an anti-coup fight. These people are accused of terrorism due to their alleged links to the Gülen movement, a faith-based group accused by the Turkish government of masterminding the coup. The movement strongly denies any involvement in the failed putsch.
In the meantime, detention warrants were issued on Monday for 21 people including active duty and purged military officers across 11 provinces on charges of terrorist organization membership due to their alleged links to the Gülen movement. The detention warrants were issued by the Balıkesir Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in western Turkey.
The Turkish government has removed more than 130,000 public servants from their jobs since the coup attempt as part of its post-coup crackdown.