Gov’t appoints 1st Army Commander as the acting chief of staff

ANKARA

Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım has announced that the government appointed 1st Army Commander Gen. Ümit Dündar as the acting Chief of Staff to replace Gen. Hulusi Akar.

Yıldırım said the appointment has been put into place to command the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) as a group of soldiers has attempted to stage a coup in the country late July 15. Gen. Dündar was actively involved to confront the plotters in Istanbul after the news broke that soldiers have kept the control of two key bridges connecting Europe and Asia.

Reports about the whereabouts of Gen. Akar was contradicting as Turkish intel said earlier than the PM's announcement that he was "on his duty."