News / Turkey

Turkey suspends over 15,000 education staff over coup plot

Tuesday, 19 July 2016 3:40 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 19 July 2016 3:41 PM ]

People shout slogans and wave Turkish national flags during a pro-government demonstration in Sarachane park in Istanbul, Turkey, July 19, 2016. ©Reuters

Turkey’s Ministry of National Education says it has dismissed more than 15,000 of its employees from their jobs over their alleged involvement in last week’s attempted military coup against the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the ministry said that "15,200 state employees have been suspended and an investigation has been launched into them.”

It further noted that those suspended are in both urban and rural establishments, and that a probe has been launched against them.

Meanwhile, the Turkish broadcaster TRT reported that the High Education Board has ordered the resignation of 1,577 deans, including 1,176 in public universities and 401 in private institutions.

Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency also reported that 399 employees of the Ministry of Family and Social Policies had been stripped of their responsibilities.

Thousands of others have been suspended from the police force, the military, Finance Ministry and other public sector positions as part of the Turkish government’s sweeping crackdown on those believed to have played a role in the abortive July 15 putsch.

The coup began when a faction of the Turkish military declared it was in control of the country and the government was no more in charge.

Tanks, helicopters, and soldiers then clashed with police and people on the streets of the capital, Ankara, and Istanbul.

More than 300 people were killed on all sides in the attempted coup d’état that was gradually suppressed.

Following the putsch, eight military officers - two commanders, four captains and two sergeants - fled to Greece in a helicopter.

Turkey's Ambassador to Greece, Kerim Uras, speaks during a news conference after a failed military coup in Turkey, at the Turkish embassy in Athens, Greece, July 19, 2016. ©Reuters

Turkey's ambassador to Greece on Tuesday called on Athens to “swiftly” return the officers, who have applied for asylum in Greece.

Failure to return the eight "will not help" ties between the two countries, Kerim Uras added.

The Turkish envoy further rejected reports that the officers would not be treated fairly at home, noting, "We take offence for such reporting because needless to say, they will face a fair trial.”

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