Turkey will mark today with a series of events under the title “Turkey - the name of victory“ the ninth anniversary of the failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016, organized according to Ankara by the so-called Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETO) of the Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, who died in October 2024, the website “Hürriyet Daily News“ reported.
During the failed coup, in which in 2016 key locations in the capital Ankara, Istanbul and elsewhere were attacked, killing 251 people and injuring over 2,200.
Later, the Turkish parliament passed a law according to which the anniversary of the coup attempt is marked as Democracy and National Unity Day.
In connection with the celebration of the ninth anniversary of the coup attempt, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to deliver a speech during a special session of the Turkish parliament, after which Erdogan will participate in several commemorative events in the Turkish capital Ankara and visit one of the police stations in the city that was attacked during the coup attempt.
At the same time, the Communications Directorate of the Turkish Presidency is organizing a series of events in Turkey and in the country's diplomatic missions abroad under the slogan “Turkey - the name of victory“. According to an official press release from the Directorate, the purpose of these events is “to celebrate the unity and resilience of the Turkish people, who firmly opposed the coup attempt“.
A special media event is also being held in Ankara and Istanbul from July 14 to 18 to inform foreign media about the efforts to deal with FETO. The event is attended by 81 Turkish journalists, one from each district of the country, and over 120 foreign journalists from 41 countries.
In connection with the anniversary, travel on the metro lines in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir will be free today.
According to official data from the Turkish Prosecutor's Office, just over 390,000 people have been detained in the country in the last nine years as part of investigations against FETO, of whom 113,837 have been permanently detained.