Former commander of the Turkish Air Forces retired general Akın Öztürk, accused of leading a failed 2016 coup, called on former defense minister Hulusi Akar and current Defense Minister Yaşar Güler, who were then the chief of general staff and the deputy chief of general staff, respectively, to appear in court and “speak the truth” after nearly a decade of silence, as hearings resumed in his retrial this week in Ankara.
Turkey survived an abortive putsch in 2016 that killed over 250 people and wounded more than a thousand. Immediately after the failed attempt, the government along with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan pinned the blame on the faith-based Gülen movement. The movement strongly denies any involvement in the coup attempt.
The late Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, whose views inspired the movement, was cited as the prime suspect in the coup indictment, while Öztürk is listed as the second suspect.
Speaking at the Sincan Prison courthouse on Monday and Tuesday, where the coup trial is being reheard following a partial reversal by the Supreme Court of Appeals, Öztürk again denied the charges and challenged the legitimacy of the trial, which human rights advocates have long criticized as politically motivated.
“You still haven’t appeared before this court in nine years,” Öztürk said, addressing Akar and Güler during his defense. “I will not make an issue of the nine years. But I do not forgive those who know the truth and choose to remain silent.”
Öztürk served as a member of the Supreme Military Council (YAŞ) at the time of the July 15, 2016 coup attempt. Akar and Güler were among the senior officers held by putschist soldiers during the coup night. Both Akar and Güler were later promoted and remained in key positions under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Öztürk, however, was arrested shortly after the events and has since been portrayed by state prosecutors and pro-government media as the top figure behind the coup. He was sentenced to life in prison in 2020. The retrial, ordered by the top appeals court in 2023, is being conducted by Ankara’s 17th High Criminal Court.
According to Öztürk’s defense and witness testimony cited in court, the general was not involved in any coup planning and only went to Akıncı Air Base on the night of July 15 after being asked by Akar and then-air force commander Abidin Ünal to persuade soldiers to stand down. He said he was at his daughter’s house when the events began and arrived at the base in civilian clothing because he had just returned from a holiday. “I didn’t curry favor with anyone to move up in the ranks,” Öztürk said. “I got where I did through merit. And I came here to speak the truth, even as those I invited to testify stayed away.”
Witnesses including officers present at Akıncı Air Base have also testified that Öztürk attempted to stop the coup, not lead it. According to case files, multiple officers claimed Öztürk conveyed Akar’s orders urging the soldiers to end their actions. Mobile phone records and security camera footage corroborated that Öztürk was not present at key planning meetings as alleged by the prosecution, his lawyer said.
Öztürk lawyer Özlem Barıner told the court that the United Nations Human Rights Council has called for his immediate release and that procedural violations continue. “Despite the UN decision and the law entitling us to question witnesses, the court is blocking our right to cross-examination,” she said, adding that they had filed a motion for recusal of the panel of judges.
Human rights advocate and lawmaker Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu of the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), who attended the hearing, described Öztürk’s remarks as historic. “This trial has laid bare just how unlawful the July 15 trials have been,” he wrote on social media.
Gergerlioğlu also criticized the court for denying Öztürk’s legal team the right to question co-defendants, despite the submission of Article 201 of the Criminal Procedure Code and the UN decision.
In July a documentary titled “Spoiler: Apolet Perdesi” (Spoiler: The Epaulet Curtain) was published on the YouTube channel Ufuk Çizgisi (“Horizon Line”), which featured statements from five former officers who served with Öztürk before being dismissed by emergency decrees after the coup. The film challenges the official narrative by presenting detailed accounts of Öztürk’s efforts to stop the coup, portraying him not as its mastermind but as a senior officer caught in the middle and later scapegoated.
The coup attempt, the ninth anniversary of which was marked last month, was suppressed overnight, but there remain many questions about the real masterminds of the abortive putsch, with conflicting statements from the government and those accused of involvement.
Ankara maintains the coup took place outside the chain of command and that then-chief of general staff Gen. Akar was held hostage by the coup plotters for hours. There is widespread suspicion that Akar was involved in the coup and had prior knowledge of it. He was later promoted to defense minister.