Turkish president rebuffs criticism over post-coup crackdown

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has brushed aside US criticism of mass arrests and a major crackdown on political dissent in the wake of the July 15 failed coup attempt, arguing that they should support the Ankara government instead of standing by "the coup plotters.”

"It's not up to you to make that decision. Who are you? Know your place," Erdogan said on Friday, criticizing a US military official, who had expressed concerns over the mass arrests of thousands of military personnel following the coup.

"Instead of thanking this nation that quashed the coup in the name of democracy, on the contrary you are taking sides with the coup plotters," Erdogan said, adding, "Besides, the coup plotter is in your country anyway. You can never convince my people otherwise."

US army General Joseph Votel, the head of the US Central Command, said on Thursday arresting Turkish military commanders could damage the two countries' relations.

"We have certainly had relationships with a lot of Turkish leaders - military leaders in particular. I am concerned about what the impact is on those relationships as we continue," Votel said.

Erdogan's remarks come as Turkish officials have arrested thousands of military figures, police officers, judiciary officials, academics and civil servants over affiliation to the network of US-based opposition cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom they accuse to have orchestrated the attempted coup.

Erdogan said on Friday that the number of people detained would further increase if more were found to have had a role in the botched putsch.

Labor Minister Suleyman Soylu said on Friday that authorities are investigating 1,300 personnel at his ministry over the failed coup attempt, noting that the government would soon review its decision to forbid civil servants from going on vacations.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has also suspended the annual leave of more than three million civil servants nationwide until further notice.

Turkey to shut down coup plot airbase

Meanwhile, Yildirim says all military bases and barracks used by putschists during the failed coup attempt two weeks ago will be ordered shuttered.

“The Akinci Air Base in Ankara, the center for the heinous coup plot, will be closed. The base will be transformed into a place to commemorate our martyrs,” the Turkish prime minister said while addressing a crowd near the airbase.

“We are closing all the barracks in Ankara and Istanbul that sent out coup tanks [and] helicopters,” Yildirim said.

He further vowed that the government would spare no effort to secure Gulen’s extradition from the United States. "We will bring him back to Turkey,” Yildirim said.

Gulen has condemned the coup attempt and denied any involvement in the violence. He has instead stated that the botched putsch may have been staged by Erdogan himself as an excuse to crack down on dissent and expand his presidential powers.

US Secretary of State John Kerry has said Washington would consider Ankara’s extradition request, but Gulen would be sent back only after compelling evidence corroborated his culpability.

Turkish army to keep up anti-Daesh campaign: FM

Also on Friday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (seen below) said the country’s military forces will press ahead with their operations against the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group and other militant outfits.

The top diplomat also dismissed speculations that the ongoing developments in Turkey are likely to undermine his country’s role in the US-led military coalition against Daesh in Syria.

Cavusoglu denied that the army was weaker as a result of the sweeping purge. “On the contrary, when we weed them (pro-Gulen elements) out, our army will be more dynamic, cleaner and more effective,” he said.

Turkey extends post-putsch crackdown to businesses

Separately, security forces in the central industrialized city of Kayseri detained Mustafa Boydak, the chief executive officer of Turkish conglomerate Boydak Holding, as part of mass detentions after the failed coup.

He and two other executives, Sukru and Halit Boydak, were detained at their residences. Police are trying to detain former chairman Haci Boydak as well as Ilyas and Bekir Boydak. Arrest warrants have also been issued for the trio.

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