Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has just spoken on live TV in Turkey (earlier, he delivered remarks via the highly unorthodox format of a FaceTime broadcast on a mobile phone shown to a CNN Turkey TV camera).
Erdoğan said the uprising was an act of “treason” and that those responsible will pay a “heavy price”, according to Reuters.
The president also said the prime minister has given orders to “eradicate” those who are shooting from the air.
He further said the uprising was carried out by a “minority” within the military who can’t stomach unity of the country. Erdoğan said some in military have been taking orders from cleric Fethullah Gulen and that the attempted coup shows the Gulen structure is an armed terrorist organization. Gulen has denied involvement.
According to Reuters’ translation, the president said he would not hand Turkey over to occupiers and said the cabinet is functioning in Ankara. Erdoğan further said he will stay “with my people”.
