Turkey ends state of emergency after two years

The Turkish government has ended the nationwide state of emergency that was imposed two years ago after a failed coup attempt, the media reported.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Source: PTI)

Ankara: The Turkish government has ended the nationwide state of emergency that was imposed two years ago after a failed coup attempt, the media reported. The decision comes weeks after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan won re-election, BBC reported on Wednesday. Under the state of emergency, tens of thousands of people were arrested or dismissed from their jobs. However, the government has decided against extending it again after seven three-month renewals. During the campaign, opposition candidates said the first thing they would do if they won would be to end the state of emergency. More than 107,000 people have been removed from public sector jobs by emergency decree since the state of emergency began and more than 50,000 people have been imprisoned pending trial, according to official statistics and NGOs. Many of those dismissed are alleged to be supporters of the exiled Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who lives in the US and is a former ally of Erdogan. Turkey accuses Gulen and his followers of organising the coup, but he denies it. The 2016 coup attempt saw Parliament bombed by military aircraft and more than 250 people killed.