It was the evening of July 15, 2016. A warm summer day was coming to an end. Many people were spending their Friday evening with friends or family, looking forward to the weekend. There was nothing to suggest that Turkey was about to be fundamentally transformed.
Then, just a few hours later, tanks were rolling through the streets. Fighter jets flying over Ankara and Istanbul. Soldiers blocking the Bosphorus Bridge, the link between Europe and Asia. The parliament in Ankara came under fire. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on the public via a video call broadcast to take to the streets and stop the coup.
The coup attempt failed that very night, but its political consequences continue to influence the country to this day.The evening of July 15, 2016 turned into a night that changed the country to this dayImage: Tolga Bozoglu/dpa/picture alliance
July 15, now a national holiday
The Turkish government blamed the Gulen movement for the coup attempt. Its founder, the Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, was once considered a close ally of Erdogan. Together, they played a key role in curbing the political influence of the Turkish military and expanding Erdogan's power. Later, the alliance fell apart.By 2016, Gulen had been living in exile in the United States for years. The government accused Gulen of having infiltrated the judiciary, police, military, and other state institutions with followers over decades in an effort to undermine the state. Gulen and his followers denied any involvement in the coup. Many high-ranking military officials with alleged ties to Gulen were arrested. Gulen died aged 83 in the US in 2024.
