Turkish newspaper Türkiye, citing a former high-ranking military official, has reported several alleged assassination attempts against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before and during the events of July 2016. According to the publication, one of the plans purportedly envisioned killing the head of state following the scenario of the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. No independent confirmation of these claims was provided, reports infohub.kz citing TASS.
The organization FETO, banned in Turkey and recognized as terrorist by the country's authorities, allegedly made several attempts to organize an assassination of President Erdogan before and during the attempted coup in July 2016, according to the newspaper.
Retired Brigadier General Ibrahim Büyükbaş, who previously oversaw cybersecurity at the Turkish Defense Ministry, told the publication that the initial alleged plot was planned during military exercises involving the president. However, Turkish intelligence reportedly identified a number of suspicious circumstances, after which the president's participation program was canceled.
Later, Büyükbaş said, security forces received information that the perpetrators allegedly intended to kill Erdogan using a scenario similar to the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, who was fatally wounded during a military parade in Cairo in 1981.
Another alleged assassination attempt, according to the Türkiye report, took place on the night of July 15, 2016, during the coup attempt. According to Turkish authorities, the president left a hotel in the resort town of Marmaris early, which allowed him to avoid the attack.
The former general also stated that FETO allegedly considered other options for eliminating the president, including a possible assassination during his flight on a foreign airline.
The coup attempt in Turkey occurred on July 15, 2016. According to official data, 253 people were killed and about 2,200 were wounded. After the suppression of the rebellion, Turkish authorities carried out massive purges in state institutions. More than 100,000 people were dismissed, and hundreds of coup participants later received life sentences.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly stated that Turkey will continue to pursue supporters of FETO until, in his words, all those involved are brought to justice.