LOC13:24
10:24 GMT
ISTANBUL, Dec 16 (KUNA) -- Turkish court Thursday began hearing a landmark
case against 196 soldiers, among them senior commanders, charged over an
alleged 2003 plot to topple the Islamist-rooted government.
NTV reported that the trial started in a huge courtroom inside a prison
complex in Silivri, a town near Istanbul, with a judge confirming the
identities of the suspects.
Among the most high-profile defendants present at the hearing were the
alleged mastermind of the coup plan, retired general Cetin Dogan, as well as
the former chiefs of the navy and the air force, Ozden Ornek and Ibrahim
Firtina.
The 196 suspects, both serving and retired officers, including acting
generals and admirals, risk 15 to 20 years in jail for attempting to overthrow
the government or prevent it from carrying out its duties through the use of
force and violence, the network reported.
The soldiers allegedly plotted to carry out false-flag bomb attacks on two
Istanbul mosques and down a Turkish jet over the Aegean to provoke tensions
with Greece, hoping to discredit the AKP and garner public support for a coup.
(end)
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KUNA 161324 Dec 10NNNN