ANKARA – The Erdogan administration has suspended over 8000 officials in the latest round of purges after the July botched coup.
Apart from these dismissals, 80 associations including sports clubs have also been closed apparently due to alleged links with Fateh Ullah Gulen, whom Turkey considers the man behind the failed coup.
More than 100,000 people have already been suspended or sacked in a crackdown on those alleged to have links to coup-plotters.
According to three new decrees published within the state of emergency imposed after the coup, 8,390 more civil servants are to lose their jobs from 63 different state institutions.
The dismissed public servants are from multiple fields of life. They include 2,687 police officers, 1,699 civil servants from the justice ministry, 838 health officials and hundreds of employees from other ministries. 631 academics and eight members of the Council of State were also dismissed.
Another aspect that suggests the level of Turkey’s intention for going hard on the individuals is the fact that dismissals are authorised by the cabinet and require no parliamentary approval under the state of emergency.
The state of emergency imposed after July coup has already been extended twice and the latest extension would expire on April 19.
The three decrees published in the Official Gazette also ordered the closure of 83 associations accused of “activities affecting the security of the state”.
These include eight sports clubs, mainly from the Kurdish-dominated south-east of the country.
