Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday defended the security campaign that detained at least 548 people and jailed 197 before last week’s NATO summit in Ankara, declaring that his government “did not leave anything to chance.”
Speaking after a Cabinet meeting, Erdoğan described NATO summits as events requiring the highest level of security and called the measures imposed before the July 7 and 8 meeting “measured.”
The president said the government had ensured that police, intelligence agencies and judicial authorities took every precaution “in a measured manner” and that the public had been informed weeks in advance.
His remarks did not address allegations that the summit was used as a pretext to target journalists, lawyers, academics, students, union members, environmental volunteers and members of leftist political groups.
At least 548 people were detained between June 20 and July 6 in home raids and police interventions at protests linked to the July 7 and 8 summit, according to a tally by the Cumhuriyet daily.
In the main Ankara investigation, authorities issued detention warrants for 241 people and took 225 into custody. Courts ordered the pretrial detention of 178 people and put 34 under house arrest.
In a separate İstanbul investigation, 19 of 31 detainees were jailed pending trial. The cases brought the documented number of people imprisoned before the summit to at least 197.
Prosecutors accused suspects in the Ankara case of membership in the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and several outlawed leftist organizations. Human Rights Watch said authorities had not presented evidence showing that many detainees had committed crimes and accused the government of using terrorism laws to suppress speech and assembly.
The Ankara Governor’s Office also imposed a citywide ban on demonstrations, marches, news conferences, sit-down protests, leafleting and the display of posters and banners through July 10. Major roads were closed, public employees were put on administrative leave and access to parts of the capital was restricted.
The governor’s office cited summit security and public order. Erdoğan said his government sought to balance security, transportation, commerce and daily life, while thanking Ankara residents whose routines were disrupted.
Leaders of NATO’s 32 member states attended the summit at the presidential complex on July 7 and 8. Erdoğan described the event as a diplomatic success and announced that Ankara would host a summit of the Organization of Turkic States on Oct. 29 and 30.