Seven of the soldiers who attacked President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s
hotel in the Aegean resort of Marmaris during the attempted military
coup on July 15 were captured during in operations on July 25.
Police
first detained three soldiers in the region’s Gökçetepesi area after a
notice that seven people were trying to stop vehicles.
The three
soldiers were identified as Maj. Taner Berber of the combat search and
rescue team and two non-commissioned officers, İlyas Yaşar and Gökhan
Güçlü.
In addition, the other remaining four soldiers were also
captured in the ongoing operations, increasing the number of soldiers
captured throughout the day to seven.
An operation by elite
soldiers and police officers was still underway to capture a further 17
troops who attacked the hotel on the night of July 15, shortly after
Erdoğan had left for Istanbul after being alerted to the coup attempt.
The
teams have been searching for the fleeing soldiers by conducting
searches of all vehicles at the entrances and exits of the district and
conducting identity checks.
Gendarmerie teams have found a number
of pieces of military equipment, including infantry riffles, guns and
hand grenades belonging to the soldiers.
A total of 19 people
were arrested as a part of the investigation into the failed coup
attempt targeting the troops who attacked Erdoğan’s hotel where he was
holidaying.
The president had left the hotel around 15 minutes before the attack but two police officers were killed in the ensuing clashes.
The
17 sought soldiers have been missing since the attack on the night of
the coup attempt, which is said to have been organized by followers of
U.S.-based Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen.
Gülen, a former
ally of Erdoğan, is accused of a long-running campaign to overthrow the
government through supporters within the Turkish state.