Turkish embassy observes Democracy & National Unity Day
Zubair Qureshi
Ambassador of Turkiye, Dr Mehmet Paçacı on Thursday commemorating the July 15, 2016’s thwarted coup attempted by Fethullah Gülen Terrorist Organization (FETO) paid rich tributes to the martyrs—some 251 lives were lost and thousands injured—and reiterated his government’s resolve to eliminate the last remnants of the terrorist network.
He was addressing a briefing the embassy of Turkiye arranged for media persons on the sixth anniversary of July 15, 2016 aborted coup. Since that day, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has declared July 15 to be remembered as Democracy & National Unity Day.
While briefing the media persons about the Democracy & the National Unity Day, Ambassador Mehmet said Pakistan was among the first nations to declare the FETO a terrorist organization. He referred to Pakistan Supreme Court’s verdict dated Sept 28, 2018 and added that after the historic decision, the Pakistan government closed down the education network under which FETO was infiltrating and influencing the Turkish minds. Pakistan is Turkiye’s true friend and we are proud of our friendship, he said. Deputy Head of Mission Esra Dere and staff of the embassy also attended the briefing and expressed solidarity with the martyrs and the injured of the July 15 failed coup.
The Turkish ambassador while remembering that dark and long night (he was an eyewitness on streets of Ankara that at that time) and the dreadful events it unfolded, said it was the night when integrity of Turkiye in every sense was defended by the people of the country against a vicious enemy i.e. FETO.
That night disciples of Fethullah Gülen did not shy away from using the lethal military force against the innocent civilians. They even tried to assassinate President Erdoğan and attacked the vehicle of the Prime Minister.
The saboteurs attacked the Presidential Complex, buildings of the National Intelligence Organization and Turkish national police. In those attacks several officials of the state were killed including 55 police personnel while hundreds of civilians protesting the coup attempt in Ankara and Istanbul were shot to death.
For 40 years, FETO had in a clandestine way infiltrated all the government institutions, departments, schools, businesses and paralyzed them. It also brainwashed some of the brilliant minds of Turkiye as well as the children.
While explaining the FETO’s modus operandi, the ambassador said FETO opened so-called educational institutions that trained personnel for the network. These institutions ranged from kindergarten to university level. To a question, the ambassador said it all started under the guise of a charitable education effort back in the 1970s.
Their design, he said, was to take the control of the government and till that goal was achieved, the operatives were directed to remain under cover.
As its strength grew, the organization began to claim a global messianic mission, depicting Faeullah Gülen ‘Imam of the Universe,’ he said.
In the meantime, it became a full-scale crime syndicate: financing was taken care of by holding companies and donations from business people. One important source of financing was money-laundering he said and informed the Turkish law-enforcement agencies had cracked down and chopped off all its tentacles, said the ambassador adding, fighting against FETO structures abroad was among the top priorities of his country. We have also raised the issue with the US where the head of this terrorist organization is taking refuge, he said, but unfortunately, so far we have not received any positive response, he said.
