A total of 17 gendarmerie officers were detained in capital Ankara on Wednesday for their alleged links to the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), which is accused of behind the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey.

Earlier, Ankara's Chief Public Prosecutor's office had issued arrest warrants for 34 suspects, 2 of whom were on-duty.

The suspects include six majors, two captains, three lieutenants, 14 petty officers of the General Command of Gendarmerie as well as nine civil imams of the FETÖ terror group.

FETÖ and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gülen orchestrated the defeated coup on July 15, 2016, which killed 251 people and nearly injured 2,200 others.

Ankara also accuses FETÖ of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.