Turkish court arrests six in Ergenekon investigation

An Istanbul court on duty ordered the arrest of Hamza Demir, Mahmut Oguz, Suleyman Solmaz, Kurtca Bektas, Riza Demir and Rifat Yildirim within the scope of an investigation launched regarding the "Ergenekon" organization.

The court released Dogukan Yorulmaz and Levent Temiz, the former head of a nationalist organization.

Five others; including Nurseli Idiz, a well-known actress, and Seyhan Soylu, an artist manager, were earlier released by the prosecutor's office.

The thirteen had been taken into custody as part of a series of detainments in the controversial Ergenekon operation.

The Ergenekon operation, which started in June 2007 with the discovery of grenades in a house in Istanbul’s Umraniye district, is allegedly a crackdown on an illegal organization believed to be planning provoking events that would pave the way for a military coup to overthrow the AKP government.

The detainees will be charged with a number of crimes including “forming an armed terrorist organization, being a member of a terrorist organization, and aiding the organization.

Photo: AA