Turkey lifts state of emergency after two years
Turkey lifts state of emergency after two years

Turkey lifted its two-year-old state of emergency almost a month after President Erdogan and AKP party secured a victory in parliamentary and presidential elections. The Turkish government declared a state of emergency for the first time on July 20, 2016 following a failed coup attempt to topple the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey […]

Turkey lifted its two-year-old state of emergency almost a month after President Erdogan and AKP party secured a victory in parliamentary and presidential elections.

The Turkish government declared a state of emergency for the first time on July 20, 2016 following a failed coup attempt to topple the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Turkey charged US-based leader Fetullah Gulen with leading the coup, which left 251 people killed an nearly 2.200 injured, Turkish Anadolu agency reported on Thursday.

The Turkish government renewed the state of emergency for the seventh time back in April.

According to CNN, responding to the lifting of the emergency order Thursday, Fotis Filippou, Amnesty International’s deputy Europe director, said it was a “step in the right direction,” but needed to be accompanied by “urgent measures if it is to be anything more than a cosmetic exercise.”

Moreover, the Council of Europe on Wednesday welcomed the Turkish government’s decision to lift the two-year-long state of emergency, according to Turkish Daily Sabah English newspaper.