UPDATE - Turkey issues arrest warrants for 120 FETO suspects

UPDATES WITH ARRESTS

By Savas Guler

KONYA, Turkey (AA) - Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in central Konya province issued arrest warrants Thursday for 120 over suspected links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), an illegal network behind the defeated coup attempt in 2016, a security source said.

Warrants came as part of an investigation based in Konya and which spread to 43 other provinces, against “secret imams” of FETO inside the military, who were identified by the testimonies of former detainees.

Later, 34 of the suspects were arrested, according to a security source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on talking to the media.

Simultaneous operations to hunt other suspects are in progress.

Fifty-eight out of 120 suspects were found out to be using the smartphone messaging app, ByLock.

ByLock is an encrypted mobile phone application used by FETO members to communicate during and after the 2016 defeated coup.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup attempt of July 15, 2016, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.