Turkish General Staff to recruit over 40,000 personnel as compensation for post-coup attempt dismissals
ANKARA
The Turkish Armed Forces will recruit over 40,000 personnel in order to compensate for losses sustained following the 2016 coup attempt, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Jan. 2.
The army, under the auspices of the Defense Ministry, is set to recruit a total of 42,938 personnel, including 3,755 officers, 5,375 sergeants, 13,213 specialized sergeants and a total of 20,595 officers and privates working on contract.
Since the deadly coup attempt, 8,568 personnel identified as having “organic ties” with the Fethullahist Terror Organization (FETÖ) have been dismissed from the military. These servicemen include 150 generals, 4,630 officers, 2,167 sergeants, 1,210 specialized sergeants and privates on contract, the agency reported.
Additionally, 16,409 military school students were dismissed and the schools shut down, Defense Minister Fikri Işık said on Dec. 10, 2016.
To compensate for the losses, the Defense Ministry has employed 15,850 persons of which 1,763 were taken on as officers, 4,135 as sergeants, 3,698 as specialized sergeants and 6,161 as privates on contract.
The ministry will continue recruiting, the agency reported.
The FETÖ, which is led by the U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, is widely believed to have been behind the July 15, 2016 coup attempt that left 250 people dead and nearly 2,200 wounded.
Since the coup attempt, more than 50,000 people, including civil servants and security personnel, have been jailed pending trial and some 150,000 suspended or dismissed from their jobs.
The Turkish government says the dismissals and arrests are necessary to tackle the security threats Turkey has been facing since the attempted takeover.
