ISTANBUL, July 19 (Xinhua) -- At least 48 people, including 20 military personnel, have been detained on Friday in Turkey over their alleged links to a group accused of orchestrating a coup attempt in 2016.
Police launched simultaneous operations in 12 provinces across the country to catch a total of 52 soldiers, upon the order of the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office in Izmir, the state-run Anadolu agency said.
Those targeted in operations are serving commissioned officers of the Turkish Air Forces, Anadolu said, noting police have so far captured 20 of them.
At a separate investigation, Istanbul prosecutors issued detention warrants for at least 68 people and police have rounded up 28 of them in simultaneous operations launched in 17 provinces.
All of the suspects allegedly contacted with the network headed by U.S.-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen via an encrypted mobile phone application, according to the agency.
The Turkish government accuses the U.S.-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen and his network of being behind the coup bid in July 2016, in which 250 people were killed.
