Turkey issues arrest warrants for 120 army members

A Turkish prosecutor issued arrest warrants for 120 army members, following a coup attempt in 2016, state agency Anadolu reported on Thursday.

Police launched attacks in 43 provinces to apprehend suspects, 58 of whom were believed to be users of illegal text phone application ByLock, Anadolu reported.

Turkey has stopped ByLockı after the failed stamp, saying Muslim cleric Fetullah Gylen used it to communicate on the night of the coup, when soldiers commanded tanks and fighter planes to attack Parliament, killing more than 240 people.

Gylene, who has lived in exil, in the United States since 1999, has denied involvement and condemned coups.

More than 50,000 people have been detained, pending trial over links to Gyleni, while 150,000 others have been dismissed or suspended from jobs in the military and in the public and private sector, broadcast Kosova Prees.

The government rejects rights groups' concerns about tough measures, saying only such cleansing could neutralise the threat represented by the Gylen network, which is said to have infiltrated institutions such as judiciary, army and schools.