Turkish prosecutors issued detention warrants for 265 people in an Ankara-based operation across 20 provinces as part of investigations launched after Turkey’s July 15, 2016 coup attempt.
Police detained 60 people in simultaneous early morning raids, according to reports.
The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office ordered the detentions.
Those taken into custody were brought to the Ankara Police Department for questioning.
Authorities said the operation was continuing and that the number of detentions could rise.
The operation targeted people accused of links to the Gülen movement, a transnational civic initiative inspired by Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen.
Ankara designates the movement as a terrorist organization and blames it for the coup attempt. The movement denies involvement in the coup attempt or any terrorist activity.
The warrants are part of the continuing post-coup crackdown, in which large groups of people have been detained in simultaneous raids based on alleged affiliation with the movement.
Rights advocates and purge victims describe the operations as a witch hunt, saying many people are targeted over alleged social, professional or institutional links rather than individualized evidence of criminal conduct.
