A Turkish court was set to begin hearing a case today against 86 people accused of membership in a shadowy armed group that plotted to overthrow the country's Islamist-rooted government.
They will answer about 30 separate charges ranging from membership in a terrorist organisation and instigating an armed uprising against the government to arson and illegal possession of weapons.
Among the 86 suspects ? 46 of whom are remanded in custody ? are retired army officers, leftist politicians, members of secularist associations, journalists, academics and underworld figures.
The trial, which followed an investigation into the discovery of hand grenades in Istanbul in June 2007, has fuelled tensions between supporters of the Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Islamist-rooted government and secularists who charge that the investigation was being used to intimidate and silence opponents.
The prosecution charges that the suspects ? alleged members of the ultranationalist Ergenekon group ? instigated violence and planned assassinations to foment political turmoil in Turkey and topple the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
The Turkish media has reported that the group was hoping the chaos would prompt a military coup.
The army, which carries significant political clout, has toppled four governments in as many decades and threatened Erdogan's government last year with stepping in to safeguard secularism.
Hardcore secularists, among them the army, suspect the AKP of advancing a secret plan to introduce Islamic rule in Turkey. The party denies any such agenda and says it is loyal to the separation of state and religion.
The 2,455-page indictment holds the Eregenekon group responsible for at least two violent attacks initially blamed on Islamists ? the 2006 bombing of a secularist newspaper critical of the AKP and an armed attack on a top court the same year in which a senior judge was killed.
The group is also accused of planning to assassinate several important people, among them Mr Erdogan, the former army chief Yasar Buyukanit, the 2006 Nobel literature laureate Orhan Pamuk, and Osman Baydemir, the mayor of Diyarbakir, the main city in Turkey's mainly Kurdish south-east that sits at the heart of a 24-year armed Kurdish insurgency.
Some suspects are widely seen as embodiments of the "deep state" ? a term used to describe members of the security forces acting outside the law, often collaborating with organised crime, to protect what they consider Turkey's best interests.
The indictment however says that Ergenekon is not institutionally linked to the Turkish military, but has penetrated senior ranks in the army.
While the trial has been applauded by pro-government and liberal circles as an unprecedented step forward in the fight against rogue elements in the state, others, especially hardcore secularists, have sharply criticised it as the AKP's means of exacting revenge on its political opponents.
*AFP
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
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Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
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- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
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Race card
4pm Al Bastakiya Listed US$300,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
4.35pm Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,200m
5.10pm Nad Al Sheba Turf Group 3 $350,000 (Turf) 1,200m
5.45pm Burj Nahaar Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,600m
6.20pm Jebel Hatta Group 1 $400,000 (T) 1,800m
6.55pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 $600,000 (D) 2,000m
7.30pm Dubai City Of Gold Group 2 $350,000 (T) 2,410m
The National selections:
4pm Zabardast
4.35pm Ibn Malik
5.10pm Space Blues
5.45pm Kimbear
6.20pm Barney Roy
6.55pm Matterhorn
7.30pm Defoe
ROUTE%20TO%20TITLE
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Director: Shady Ali
Cast: Boumi Fouad , Mohamed Tharout and Hisham Ismael
Rating: 3/5
Final scores
18 under: Tyrrell Hatton (ENG)
- 14: Jason Scrivener (AUS)
-13: Rory McIlroy (NIR)
-12: Rafa Cabrera Bello (ESP)
-11: David Lipsky (USA), Marc Warren (SCO)
-10: Tommy Fleetwood (ENG), Chris Paisley (ENG), Matt Wallace (ENG), Fabrizio Zanotti (PAR)
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Company%20Profile
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Schedule for Asia Cup
Sept 15: Bangladesh v Sri Lanka (Dubai)
Sept 16: Pakistan v Qualifier (Dubai)
Sept 17: Sri Lanka v Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 18: India v Qualifier (Dubai)
Sept 19: India v Pakistan (Dubai)
Sept 20: Bangladesh v Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi) Super Four
Sept 21: Group A Winner v Group B Runner-up (Dubai)
Sept 21: Group B Winner v Group A Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 23: Group A Winner v Group A Runner-up (Dubai)
Sept 23: Group B Winner v Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 25: Group A Winner v Group B Winner (Dubai)
Sept 26: Group A Runner-up v Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 28: Final (Dubai)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Juliet, Naked
Dir: Jesse Peretz
Starring: Chris O'Dowd, Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke
Two stars
