ISTANBUL, July 15 (Xinhua) -- Turkey marked its national holiday of "democracy and unity" on Saturday in bid to celebrate the anniversary of foiling the failed coup launched last July.
Turkey has embarked on the major purge in Turkey's history, arresting 50,000 people and sacking over 100,000 more. Erdogan also shored up his position by winning a referendum on enhancing his powers earlier this year.
In the recent wave of dismissals ordered just hours another 7,563 police, soldiers and other state employees were fired under the state of emergency that has been in place since July 20 last year.
The coup bid also frayed ties between the United States and European Union with NATO member Turkey, which accused its allies of failing to show solidarity.
Gulen has always denied involvement in the coup bid and in a new statement Friday said the accusations were "baseless, politically motivated slanders" and slammed a "witch hunt" of Erdogan's critics.
Saturday's commemorations target at etching July 15, 2016 into the minds of Turks as a key date in the history of the modern state.
