President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was joined by Prime Minister and ruling AK Party chairman Binali Yıldırım, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli at the massive "Democracy and Martyrs' Rally" in Istanbul's Yenikapı Square in a show of national solidarity and a common protest against the July 15 defeated coup that left 240 people martyred and 2,200 others injured.
An estimated 5 million Turkish citizens, including the president, prime minister, the leaders of Turkey's major political parties, the parliament speaker and deputies, top generals, senior judges, members of nongovernmental organizations, artists and athletes were all at Yenikapı Square.
Opposition MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli and President Erdoğan shook hands at the massive "Democracy and Martyrs' Rally" in a show of national solidarity and a common protest against the July 15 defeated coup that left 240 people martyred and 2,200 others injured.
Bahçeli praised the popular resistance to the July 15 attempted coup in a speech.
"I watch Turkey beaming with pride. There is faith here, there is will here," he said. "People stood tall, and taught a lesson to the traitors and terrorists of the July 15 coup bid.
"A new voyage begins from Yenikapi," Bahçeli added.
Turkey's government has said the coup was organized by the followers of Fethullah Gülen, leader of the Gülenist Terror Organization (FETÖ) who has lived in self-imposed exile in the U.S. since 1999. Ankara has formally asked Washington for his extradition.
President Erdoğan greeted top military personnel as he arrived for the mass rally held against the failed coup attempt in the country.
The Yenikapi event is the highlight of weeks of democracy rallies held in cities across the country since the defeated coup, which led to 240 martyrs and wounded nearly 2,200 people.
Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kılıçdaroğlu was greeted by President Erdoğan at the mass democracy rally at Yenikapı Square in Istanbul, which became the first venue where ruling and opposition party leaders shared the same platform.
