Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, then leader of Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), described the July 15, 2016 coup attempt as a “controlled coup,” claiming that the government had advance knowledge of the military operation and saying his party had evidence to support the allegation.
“The events of July 15 were a controlled coup attempt. Would a coup begin at 9 p.m.? They knew about it,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.
Turkish officials have rejected claims that the government knew about or controlled the coup attempt, which Ankara blames on the movement led by Fethullah Gülen.
Kılıçdaroğlu also questioned why the names of ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lawmakers allegedly found to have used ByLock had not been made public.
Turkish authorities have treated use of ByLock, an encrypted messaging application, as evidence of membership in the Gülen movement. Critics have challenged the reliability of that approach and disputed the government’s claim that the application was used exclusively by members of the movement.
Referring to the upcoming constitutional referendum, Kılıçdaroğlu said that a victory for the “no” campaign would not call the president’s legitimacy into question because he had been elected by the public.
