Fri May 23 17:04:21 UTC 2025: **News Article:**
**Turkey Arrests Dozens of Soldiers and Police Over Alleged Gulen Ties**
Istanbul – May 23, 2025 – Turkish authorities arrested 65 soldiers and police officers across the country in early morning raids on Friday, May 23rd, 2025. The arrests are reportedly connected to alleged affiliations with the late Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom the Turkish government accused of orchestrating the failed 2016 coup.
According to state news agency Anadolu, 56 active-duty soldiers from the Turkish armed forces were detained. Halk TV reported the arrest of nine police officers, primarily in Istanbul. The operation, targeting the “Fethullah Terror Organisation (FETO),” spanned 36 provinces and was centered in Istanbul. Seven additional soldiers remain at large.
The Turkish government considers Gulen’s Hizmet movement, formerly influential in Turkey, as a terrorist organization under the designation FETO. Gulen, a former ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, became a political rival and fled to the United States in 1999. He remained in exile until his death in October of this year. Despite his passing, Turkey continues its pursuit of his followers both domestically and abroad.
Halk TV, citing a prosecutor’s statement, reported the operation commenced in Istanbul at 6:00 a.m. local time and involved members of the air force, gendarmerie, and land and naval forces.
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