Another 20 prosecutors have been moved from their posts, amid the Erdogan Government’s denunciation of a major corruption investigation as a “plot”.
More than 50 high-profile businessmen and politicians were detained last month. Some remain in prison pending the investigation.
Authorities responded by removing prosecutors and police chiefs from their posts. A second wave of the investigation was blocked, and the new head of police in Istanbul defied orders for more arrests.
Today’s Zaman reports that the Istanbul police again defied prosecutors on Friday morning, not only refusing to carry out raids but also filing a complaint about the “illegal order”.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan removed four ministers from his Government after their sons were arrested and the ministers were reportedly under investigation.
On Wednesday, Erdoğan told Turkish Ambassadors:
A very important task falls on your shoulders. We expect you to exert more effort to defeat this treacherous plot targeting Turkey by telling your counterparts the truth. I request you to underline that what’s going on is not a corruption operation, but a coup (against the government) in the form of a corruption operation.
