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Thousands rally in Istanbul to mark second anniversary of defeated coup attempt
Thousands rally in Istanbul to mark second anniversary of defeated coup attempt
Thousands of people flocked to the July 15 Martyrs Bridge in Istanbul to mark the second anniversary of the defeated coup attempt in 2016. Click through for the story in photos...
"July 15 Democracy and National Unity Day Meeting" began with a moment of silence for the martyrs and singing of the national anthem. The names of 251 martyrs were read out one by one and the Quran was recited.
Holding Turkish flags, some people chanted slogans such as “Martyrs do not die, the country is not divided."
Relatives of the martyrs came to the venue with photos of their relatives.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a speech at the rally.
Erdoğan said: “Today, we feel deep sorrow and immense pride in our hearts at the same time.”
Praising the Turkish nation’s courage and resistance that night, he said: “This victory is a result of the courage of our martyrs and veterans, who challenged tanks and planes.”
Erdoğan called the July 15 coup attempt as “a revival of Turkish nation” and a “big democracy struggle.”
“July 15 will never be forgotten," he said. “We will never forget those who prayed for us and those who helped FETO [Fetullah Terrorist Organization].” Erdoğan likened FETO terror group to an “octopus". Referring to the nationwide fight against the group, he said: “We have cut the octopus’ tentacles.”
“In the last two years, we’ve crumpled all the structures of the organization in the state, business community, bureaucracy, trade, media and civil society on a large scale.”
“Murderers who shot our countrymen that night are getting the heaviest punishments," the president noted, vowing to carry out their determined fight against the terror group.
The second anniversary of the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey was marked across the world with commemoration ceremonies. Two-hundred-and-fifty trees were planted in the memory of July 15 martyrs in the southern Bosnian city of Mostar.
Click through for more photos from the ceremonies...
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