Military coup in Turkey as President Erdogan urges citizens to fight

Forum 7 years ago

Military coup in Turkey as President Erdogan urges citizens to fight

Turkey’s military said Friday night it had seized power.

The coup plotters say they are fighting corruption and human rights abuse by government.

President Tayyip Erdogan has however vowed that the attempted coup would be put down.

Reacting, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appealed for calm.

A UN spokesman, Farhan Haq, said: “The Secretary-General is closely following developments in Turkey. He is aware of the reports of a coup attempt in the country.

“The United Nations is seeking to clarify the situation on the ground and appeals for calm.”

President Erdogan in a phone call to broadcaster CNN Turk said he remained the president of the country.

He added that he remains head of the army and called for people to take to fight the illegality.

“We will overcome this,” Erdogan said, speaking on a video call.

He called on his followers to take to the streets to defend his government and vowed that the coup plotters would pay a heavy price.