Turkish soldiers bound in gym after failed coup

A gym floor covered with half naked soldiers, tied by their hands and feet in Turkey, believed to be among dozens of soldiers who surrendered during the failed military coup


SIRNAK – TURKEY. An image has emerged apparently showing a gym floor covered with half naked soldiers, tied by their hands and feet in Turkey.
They are believed to be among dozens of soldiers who surrendered during the failed military coup over the weekend.
The picture is reported to have been taken at a basketball court in Sirnak, eastern Turkey, while Government loyalists watch over them.
More than 6,000 people were arrested following the failed uprising including nearly 3,000 judges.
At least 250 were killed and more than 1,500 were injured.
Around 1,800 special forces police officers have arrived in Istanbul as Turkey reels from the failed coup attempt that plunged the city and the capital Ankara into a night of violence.
The state-run Anadolu news agency said the officers took up positions in critical locations and were also patrolling the city.
Istanbul police chief Mustafa Caliskan had ordered the shooting down of any helicopters flying overhead without warning, the report said.
The extra security comes as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered F-16 fighter jets to patrol Turkish airspace, according to Anadolu.
Meanwhile, Sunday marked a day of funerals for some of the victims amid arrests of scores of alleged coup supporters within the military and judiciary.
Prime minister Binali Yildirim praised the solidarity displayed among the country’s rival political parties in the wake of Friday’s coup bid.
Speaking to throngs of government supporters in Ankara’s central Kizilay Square, he thanked the Turkish people for defeating the coup.
The crowd chanted the name of Mr Erdogan in tribute to the president.
Mr Yildirim said the attempted coup showed ‘that no matter their political views, all parties came together arm-in-arm against the coup. They cried out together’.
In an unusual show of unity, Turkey’s four main political parties released a joint declaration during an extraordinary parliamentary meeting, denouncing the coup attempt.

– METRO.CO.UK/Sinar