[36] They attempted to seize control of several places in Ankara, Istanbul, Marmaris and elsewhere, such as the Asian side entrance of the Bosphorus Bridge, but failed to do so after forces and civilians loyal to the state defeated them.

[82] For example, prosecutors that allegedly were aligned with the Gülen movement tried to arrest the intelligence chief Hakan Fidan for the peace negotiations with the PKK, and by extension PM Erdogan subsequently, as the Turkish secret service is directly subordinate to the prime minister of Turkey.

The military and judiciary have regularly intervened in politics to block or ban popular parties representing conservative Muslim Turks, attempting to relax the restrictions on traditional religious practices, such as women's wearing of headscarves.

[90][92] In these trials in 2013 – viewed as "sensational"[90] and "one of the biggest in recent Turkish history"[92] – 275 people, including senior military officers, journalists, lawyers, and academics, were said to be involved in the so-called "Ergenekon" conspiracy, reportedly plotting a coup in 2003/04 against then–Prime Minister Erdoğan.

[115] During the coup attempt, soldiers forced anchor Tijen Karaş to read out a statement saying that "the democratic and secular rule of law has been eroded by the current government" and that Turkey was now led by the Peace at Home Council who would "ensure the safety of the population.

"[104] The statement read in part: "Turkish Armed Forces have completely taken over the administration of the country to reinstate constitutional order, human rights and freedoms, the rule of law and general security that was damaged.

His plane landed at 02:50[138] The First Army General Command in Istanbul stated in a news conference that the TSK did not support the coup and the perpetrators represented a tiny faction that were on the verge of being brought under control.

[164] However, the Alliance for Shared Values, a non-profit organization associated with Gülen, released a statement reiterating that it condemns any military intervention in domestic politics, and saying Erdoğan's allegations against the movement were "highly irresponsible".

"[166] Reuters reported that in early hours of 16 July, the coup appeared to have "crumbled" as crowds defied pro-coup military orders and gathered in major squares of Istanbul and Ankara to oppose it.

[172] Equally important to the coup's failure, according to military strategist Edward N. Luttwak, was the inability of the rebels to neutralize Erdoğan and other high ranking government officials, either by killing or detaining them.

[186] Reports have emerged, neither confirmed nor denied by Russia or Turkey that the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate intercepted signals on an imminent coup passed on to loyal Turkish operatives.

[196] On 17 August 2016, Turkey started releasing what was expected to eventually amount to about 38,000 prison inmates, to make more space in the penal system for detainees, numbering about 35,000, who were arrested or detained after being involved in or suspected of association, with the 2016 failed coup.

[202] Rear Admiral Mustafa Zeki Ugurlu, who had been stationed at NATO's Allied Command Transformation in Norfolk, Virginia, sought asylum in the United States after being recalled by the Turkish government.

[204][205] On 20 June 2019, a terrorism court in Turkey sentenced 151 people to life in prison, including General Akın Öztürk, former commander of Turkish Air Force and the most senior officer involved in the coup.

[214] On 2 August 2016, President Erdoğan said Western countries were "supporting terrorism" and the military coup, saying "I'm calling on the United States: what kind of strategic partners are we, that you can still host someone whose extradition I have asked for?

"[221] On 1 December 2017, Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's office issued an arrest warrant for American political analyst, former CIA official and former vice chairman of US National Intelligence Council Graham Fuller, stating his involvement in the coup.

[222] A career US State Department official who was once CIA Station Chief in Kabul and later went on to be a political scientist in Rand Corporation specializing in the Middle East, Turkish authorities said Fuller attended a meeting in Istanbul on 15 July 2016 involving organization and coordination of the botched coup.

"The claims of torture and assault make up a pre-packaged misinformation campaign formed by members of FETÖ, one which is untrue and distorted,"[278] On 7 August, between three and five million people gathered for an anti-coup rally organized by the Turkish authorities in Istanbul.

[284] Vincent Cochetel, the director of the Europe Bureau of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, said in August 2016 that parts of the EU-Turkey deal about immigration were already de facto suspended because no Turkish police were present at Greek detention centres to oversee deportations.

"We deeply admire the resolve of the brave and resilient Turkish people, who stood up against the forces of darkness and anarchy to express their support and commitment to democracy," the PM said in a statement issued from his office.

"[337] Azerbaijan strongly condemned the attempted military coup in Turkey and considered such actions unacceptable according to a statement from Novruz Mammadov, deputy head of the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration and chief of the foreign relations department.

[356] Journalist Ezgi Başaran said that "the statement of the junta, that was [...] read on the [...] government TV [channel] as the coup got under way, bore a strong resemblance to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's famous address to the Turkish Youth.

"[356] The citizen journalism site Bellingcat published an analysis of the messages of a WhatsApp group consisting of high-ranking military officials who had taken part in the coup covering their activities including them killing several people.

[358] German Islamic studies scholar Rainer Hermann [de] said the putschists tried to forestall a large-scale purge of judiciary and military, the implementation of which had already started on Saturday, the day after the coup attempt.

[360][361][362] Advocates of such theories pointed to how Erdoğan stood to gain from the coup attempt in terms of increasing his popularity and support for his calls for an executive presidency, while being able to legitimize further crackdowns on judicial independence and the opposition in general.

"[367] The organization and spontaneous synchronization by large numbers of mosques was perceived to be unachievable unless there had been prior preparation, with journalists also pointing to how Erdoğan could have strategically used the call to prayer to invoke religious sentiment in a political situation as a veiled attack on state secularism.

[370][371][372] Several social media users have compared the coup attempt to the Reichstag fire in 1933, which Adolf Hitler used as an excuse to suspend civil liberties and order mass arrests of his opponents.

"[373] The New York Times reported that some Turkish citizens believed the coup attempt was staged by Erdoğan to improve his public image and popularity, while cracking down on political opponents and expanding his power.

Skeptics said that the coup would be used as an excuse for further erosion of judicial independence and a crackdown on the opposition, giving the AKP greater and unstoppable power over all state institutions and paving the way for a more radical Islamist agenda at odds with the founding principles of the Turkish Republic.

[381] Around 1 December, the Istanbul prosecutor's office issued an arrest warrant for Graham E. Fuller,[382] an American author and political analyst specializing in Islamic extremism[383] after a long CIA career[384] and holding the role of vice-chair of the United States National Intelligence Council.