Turkey has dismissed 1,389 personnel from the armed forces for suspected links to U.S.-based Fethullah Gulen, the Muslim cleric whom Turkey accuses of being behind a failed coup attempt earlier this month.
The July 31 report by state-run Anadolu Agency comes hours after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan proposed to bring the General Staff of the military and Turkey’s spy agency under the authority of his office.
The constitutional changes, which seek to bring the military under government control, would have to be approved by a two-thirds majority and therefore Erdogan would need the support of opposition parties.
Erdogan also said that military schools will be shut down and a national defense university will be established.
The proposed changes are the latest in a widening crackdown launched after the failed coup on July 15.
Based on reporting by Reuters, dpa, and BBC
