86 FETÖ suspects detained in nationwide anti-terror operations


At least 86 suspects were detained across Turkey for their suspected links to the Gülenist Terror Organization (FETÖ), according to security sources on Saturday.

The Istanbul Public Prosecutor's office issued arrest warrants for 103 suspects for being part of FETÖ's "marriage service structure", said the sources, requesting anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The suspects' names apparently appeared in match-making catalogs prepared by the terror group to allegedly help its members find spouses.

Police conducted simultaneous operations in 36 provinces and detained 63 suspects, the sources said, adding that the operations were underway to detain the remaining suspects.

In another operation in Istanbul, Esmaül Hüsna Öksüz, niece of Adil Öksüz, who is accused of being a mastermind behind the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey, was detained while she was allegedly trying to send FETÖ-linked documents to the U.S. by courier, the sources said.

Öksuz was brought to a court and remanded in custody.

Separately, 15 on-duty military officers were detained for their suspected links to FETÖ in the western province of Manisa.

Four more suspects were also detained each in Burdur and Konya provinces for their suspected links to FETÖ, another security source said.

FETÖ and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gülen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which killed 250 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.