Turkey targets 155 suspected Gulen followers in new police operations – reports

Turkish authorities began rounding up 155 suspected followers of cleric Fethullah Gulen on Friday, police and media said. Ankara accuses the US-based Gulen of masterminding a failed coup in July 2016, a claim he denies. Since the coup attempt, the authorities have arrested thousands of his suspected followers and fired thousands more, Reuters said. Friday’s roundup included warrants for 55 employees in 13 provinces of Isik Publications, a publishing company that printed Gulen’s books, according to Istanbul police. Warrants were also issued for 38 former police officers in six provinces who were accused of being members of Gulen’s purported network, Anadolu reported. A total of 24 had been detained, it added.