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India urges all sides in Turkey to respect ballot mandate
July 16, 2016, 5:27 am

People gather near a destroyed car in Ankara, Turkey, July 16, 2016 [Xinhua]

People gather near a destroyed car in Ankara, Turkey, July 16, 2016 [Xinhua]

India has urged all sides in the Turkey crisis to respect the mandate of the ballot, a Foreign Ministry statement said on Saturday.

“We have been closely following the developments in Turkey. India calls upon all sides to support democracy and mandate of the ballot, and avoid bloodshed,” Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted.

An attempted Turkish military coup appeared to crumble on Saturday after crowds answered President Tayyip Erdogan’s call to take to the streets to support him and dozens of rebel soldiers abandoned their tanks in the main city of Istanbul, Reuters reported.

On Saturday morning, Turkey’s Police Chief Celalettin Lekesiz said 16 coup plotters have been killed in clashes at Turkey’s military police command, according to state-run news agency Anadolu.

Lekesiz says 250 others have been arrested. He says clashes at the command are continuing but “are about to come to an end.”

State news agency Anadolu reported on Saturday that over 90 people were killed in the violence that erupted on Friday after a faction of the armed forces attempted to seize power. More than 1100 people are injured.

Erdogan, who has ruled Turkey since 2003, on Saturday morning addressed supporters from the Ataturk Airport in Ankara, saying the government was in control and that the uprising which was “an act of treason” will be crushed.

Reuters quoted an emailed statement from the Turkish military General Staff’s media office address that said the pro-coup faction was determinedly still fighting.

Turkey’s state-run news agency said on Saturday that the Turkish military chief has been rescued in an operation at the air base.

 

TBP and Agencie