Turkey has said 32,000 have been detained over links to Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara blames for the July coup attempt. Turkey continues to press the US to extradite the Pennsylvania-based religious leader. Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag told NTV television that 70,000 people had been investigated after the coup and of them 32,000 remanded in custody. “This process is continuing,” Bozdag told the private broadcaster Wednesday in remarks broadcast live, AP reported. This staggering number of coup suspects marks an increase of more than 10,000 from those previously given by the government. Bozdag said that as courts review individual cases there could be new arrests, and some of those detained could also be released. The logistic of conducting criminal trials of tens of thousands will be the biggest legal process in Turkey’s history and are set to put the system under unprecedented pressure. Turkey’s allies, including Germany and the US, have expressed concern over the magnitude of the crackdown, but Ankara has insisted that the rule of law is being observed.
