We will not forgive those who characterize as “theatre” what happened on July 15, 2016. This was stated today by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who made a statement in Istanbul on the occasion of the eighth anniversary of the failed coup attempt eight years ago, reports CNN-Turk TV, quoted by BTA.
The President visited the monument to the martyrs of July 15 in the metropolis. We remember with great pride the epic struggle of our people against tanks and deadly weapons with bare hands. We will not forgive those who call July 15 a ``play,'' those who call it ``theatre,'' and those who shamelessly call it a ``conspiracy,'' until the Day of Judgment, Erdogan said.
Dear Istanbulites, relatives of our martyrs, our veteran heroes, today I greet you most heartily. On today's eighth anniversary of the coup attempt, we are together again. I would once again like to thank everyone who rushed to the squares. Only on one of the bridges in Istanbul, 34 of our citizens were martyred. We have not forgotten and we will never forget all this, said the president.
According to the Turkish authorities, the FETO (Fethullahist Terrorist Organization) group of US-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gülen was behind the coup attempt in July 2016. More than 250 people were killed and more than 2,500 were injured in the clashes with the coup plotters.
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