Possible military coup underway in Turkey

[MowCowWhoHow III]

What's going on in #Ankara & #Istanbul? -Reports of jets (F-16s?) flying low in Ankara -Both Istanbul bridges closed by soldiers (CNNTurk)
https://twitter.com/wellsla/status/754036058287898624

Rumours of a militart coup d'etat in Turkey after opposition news website @Haberdar published story on skirmishes b'ween police & soldiers.
https://twitter.com/Namevindi/status/754032797845774336

Gunfire heard in Turkish capital and military jets and helicopters seen overhead - witnesses
https://twitter.com/rtenews/status/754039286652104704

live:

or

http://www.cbsnews.com/live/

[tonyt53]

1. Fifth largest military in the world, so they have some power.

[XemaSab]

2. Twitter link for "Turkey"

https://twitter.com/search?q=turkey&ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Enews%7Ctwgr%5Esearch

Looks like shit is getting real there.

[1StrongBlackMan]

3. military coup? Is that a plus or a negative for the US?

[tonyt53]

5. Likely positive.

[FLPanhandle]

7. Disagree

President Erdogan has been quite friendly with the US.

[citood]

6. That was my first question

Up until recently, Turkey has been accused of helping ISIS financially...and just last week there were indications Turkey was going to cooperate with Russia in eliminating ISIS in Syria.

So, I don't even know where the civilian government of Turkey stands, much less where its military stands.

[tblue37]

15. Erdogan is an Islamist dictator whose administration rolled back the

secularization Turkey enjoyed as a result of Ataturk's reforms. I don't know whether the military will re-secularize the country, especially since fundamentalist religion is the norm in that region now, but the military has in the past applied pressure against attempts to make Turkey a theocracy.

I will keep my fingers crossed.

[oberliner]

28. No, he's not

He was democratically elected.

[tblue37]

32. And since then has suppressed the opposition and taken control of the media.

Hitler was also democratically elected, and so was Mussolini.

[oberliner]

35. They can vote him out at the next election

He had not cancelled elections and dissolved parliament like those dictators you named.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

38. You forget that an informed public is the root of democracy. Erdogan is not democratic. . nt

[FLPanhandle]

4. President Erdogan is a complete ass

Worse than Trump.

[Glassunion]

8. Watching a live stream... Lots of military aircraft flying very low over the city.

[JesterCS]

11. Do you have a link for the stream? N/t

[Glassunion]

12. I found it through twitter on my phone.

I'm sorry I don't have a direct link.

[JesterCS]

13. No problem, I'll browse twitter, thanks. N/t

[Glassunion]

14. It just went dead...

I saw another tweet that facebook, twitter, etc. just went dark in Turkey. True or not, I haven't a clue.

https://twitter.com/Holbornlolz/status/754044391656914944

[OriginalGeek]

22. as an atheist, I'm going to hell anyway

so I might as well laugh along the way:
Twitter, Facebook and Youtube in Turkey just blocked

[temporary311]

9. Been wondering when this would happen.

[Motley13]

10. Turkey is our ally

so are the Kurds, however Turk & Kurds hate each other & are killing each other. Wish we could get them into a truce.

[tblue37]

17. The Kurds on the Turkish border are waging one of the most effective

campaigns against ISIS, without much Western assistance.

[muriel_volestrangler]

18. PM says it is a coup attempt

AP NewsAlert: Military Jets Flying Over Turkish Capital Ankara; Military Vehicles Blocking Bridges in Istanbul, Reports Say

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-07-15/ap-newsalert-military-jets-flying-over-turkish-capital-ankara-military-vehicles-blocking-bridges-in-istanbul-reports-say

Turkish PM Binali Yıldırım says security forces are tackling situation after parts of armed forces launched coup attempt

A witness in the country’s capital told Reuters that gunshots were heard as military jets and helicopters were seen flying overhead. Witnesses in Istanbul, Turkey’s biggest city, also spotted helicopters overhead, the agency reported.

The local broadcaster NTV reported that both of Istanbul’s bridges across the Bosphorus, the strait separating the European and Asian sides of the city, had been closed to traffic. It was not immediately clear if the events were related.

The Turkish prime minister Binali Yildirim says that an attempted coup by parts of the military has been launched, according to Reuters. He reportedly added that security forces were doing what they could to resolve the situation.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2016/jul/15/turkey-coup-attempt-military-gunfire-ankara

[tblue37]

19. The "Telegraph" is reporting it as an attempted military coup:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/07/15/turkey-low-flying-jets-and-gunfire-heard-in-ankara1/

[malaise]

24. Not attempted

They now have control of all state media

[tblue37]

25. Wow. Since someone close to me just spent 2 years working at the US

embassy in Ankara (finished his posting there 17 months ago), I can't tell you how relieved I am that he is not there any more. Ever since Syria and ISIS heated up I have been grateful that he is not there any more, but this just reinforces that relief. I hope he doesn't end up going back.

[malaise]

27. I can imagine

This is still fluid - remember there may well be several faction in said army.

[geek tragedy]

20. Holy crap.

Erdogan is an Islamist, ISIS-humping, autocratic nutter.

But, he was elected.

Yikes.

[malaise]

21. You are correct

M$Greedia has caught up with you

[ananda]

23. The army says it has taken control of the country.

This is something!

[malaise]

26. Great coverage on BBC

Airports blocked - aircraft circling overhead - no landings or departures.

Let's see if they are successful this time. Turkey has a history of coups and attempted coups.
If it's true, I don't see how the President went on vacation after that airport explosion - could have been the last straw.

[ananda]

29. MSNBC is giving good coverage too.

Richard Engel explains the roots and causes very well.

[MowCowWhoHow III]

30. Turkish President Erdogan safe, being taken to secret location by forces loyal to him

Turkish President Erdogan safe, being taken to secret location by forces loyal to him
https://twitter.com/AFP/status/754053586192048128

The less 'clean' this coup succeeds or fails, the more serious the consequences.

[Else You Are Mad]

31. I don't know if this is a good or bad thing.

The coup could cease the fundamentalist regression Turkey has been undergoing under Erdogan but it could also help ISIS gain control in the region if the military is distracted with a civil war.

I hope other NATO forces are not drawn into this conflict.

[Cayenne]

33. The reason for the coup

is that NATO was displeased with Erdogan's rapprochement to Syria and Russia which would have ended the Syrian war early.

[6chars]

34. You got it!

[NobodyHere]

37. Evidence?

[Cayenne]

39. Why do you want evidence?

It is my conjecture but I still think I am right and it will come out in the coming days. The efficiency and speed of the military also makes me believe that NATO was behind it.

[cherokeeprogressive]

44. My prediction: Erdogan stays in power.

And this ends in a bloodbath.

[Cayenne]

46. You were right

There will be recriminations galore.

[Glassunion]

36. TRT1 anchor says TV scripts approved by military who took over newsroom

https://twitter.com/OksanaBoyko_RT/status/754060743260200960/photo/1

[LongTomH]

40. I understand that Erdogan is/was an autocrat; but.......

.....will a military junta be any better? Will they allow free elections?

[Igel]

41. Turkey has a long history of military coups.

Followed by elections.

If there's one kind of imposed democracy that I can tolerate, it's one like Turkey's. The government can't get too far ahead of the people. If it does, the military pushes the reset button. If the government gets too close to the rural population, the military pushes the reset button. The country is controlled largely by the urban population, often Western educated. Some governments went too autocratic, some went too liberal, this one's gone rather Islamic.

The question is still whether the coup holds. Not all coups are successful; a coup must be successful for the would-be coup implementers to survive. Failed revolutionaries, like failed coup plotters, most often die. It takes a fairly enlightened government to not execute them.

(Note that Chavez is an decent example of this. Like the government he couped against or not, it didn't kill him and he came back to find autocracy by other means.)

[C_U_L8R]

42. Meanwhile, Trump is stymied...

trying to figure out a snappy hashtag for his tweet.

[mainer]

43. Watching TV coverage. Why can't they pronounce Erdogan's name???

Jeez, "experts," it's pronounced ErdoWAHN.

It's also driving me crazy how they're all talking as if Erdogan is some sort of wonderful guy.

[NobodyHere]

45. They should just call him Gollum