A total of 28 soldiers were handed life sentences on Tuesday in three separate cases related to a failed military coup in 2016, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency reported. The soldiers were charged with “violating and attempting to overthrow the constitution’’ in relation to incidents in Istanbul and the south-eastern towns of Mus and Sirnak during the failed putsch on July 15, 2016, according to Anadolu.
Turkey remains under a state of emergency, which was imposed after the coup attempt.
This week, the Turkish parliament will vote on extending the state of emergency by another three months, which – if completed – would mean the country has been under emergency rule for two years.
More than 50,000 people are under arrest in connection with the coup, and some 150,000 people have been purged from the civil service and the military.
