Police arrested 15 suspects including professors for links with the Gülenist terror cult (FETÖ) from the Ege University in Turkey's western Izmir province on Saturday.

The operation was launched as part of the ongoing investigation of the Izmir chief public prosecutor's office to detain members of FETÖ, the terror cult behind the failed bloody July 15 coup attempt which killed over 240 civilians and injured more than 2,000.

The police were able to arrest 15 out of 23 suspects who were issued an arrest warrant, and are still searching for the remaining suspects.

The suspects are charged with acting in accordance with the Gülenist terror cult, the main suspect behind the failed July 15 coup, as well as using Bylock, an encrypted messaging app allegedly used by FETÖ members to avoid detection.

On July 15, a group of rogue soldiers associated with FETÖ, led by Fetullah Gülen, who lives in self-imposed exile in the U.S., attempted to overthrow the democratically elected government in Turkey through a military takeover.

Gülen and his followers are charged with attempting to infiltrate Turkey's state institutions, especially the military, police apparatus and judiciary, with the ultimate aim of creating a parallel state.

Turkey has requested the extradition of Gülen from the U.S. to stand trial for a series of crimes.