Republican People’s Party lawmaker Eren Erdem claimed that then-Defense Minister Fikri Işık met with Adil Öksüz in Sakarya on July 14, 2016, one day before Turkey’s July 15 coup attempt.
Speaking on Tele 1 television, Erdem alleged that there was video footage of the meeting and that the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), had information about who possessed the footage.
Öksüz has been described by Turkish authorities as a key civilian figure in the coup attempt and has remained one of the most disputed names in post-coup investigations.
The allegation is politically sensitive because it concerns a serving defense minister and an alleged meeting two days before the coup attempt with one of the central figures in Ankara’s case files.
The Defense Ministry denied Erdem’s claim in a written statement.
“Legal proceedings have been initiated against the completely baseless and nonsensical claims made by CHP İstanbul lawmaker Eren Erdem against Defense Minister Fikri Işık,” the ministry said.
The ministry’s statement rejected the allegation and announced legal action but did not address Erdem’s specific claim that video footage existed or that MİT knew who held it.
