Greece refuses to extradite 3 Turkish servicemen, Ankara demands explanation

Sputnik
Thu, 08 Dec 2016 07:40 UTC

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Up to 100 rebel soldiers surrendered on Bosphorus Bridge after their failed uprising.

Ankara disagreed with the decision of the Greek Court to extradite solely three out of eight Turkish servicemen, suspected of having links with July's coup, and insists on full extradition, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Wednesday. On Tuesday, the Court of Appeal in Athens decided to extradite three out of eight Turkish soldiers, who fled from Turkey by helicopter the day after the coup attempt.

On Monday, the Court ruled out extradition of three other Turkish servicemen with judges and a prosecutor having decided that the lives of the Turkish officers would be under threat in case of extradition. The future of the remaining two Turkish soldiers is yet to be decided.

"Why did it happen like that? We need to see the reason behind it. We are closely following the issue. Our expectation is that all of them would be extradited [to Turkey]," Cavusoglu said, as quoted by the Anadolu news agency.

All eight Turkish servicemen have denied their involvement in the coup attempt, but said they face prosecution in Turkey due to the government's post-coup crackdown. Ankara has repeatedly demanded their extradition.

On July 15, a military coup attempt took place in Turkey. Ankara accused Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen, who has been living in the US state of Pennsylvania since 1999, and his followers of playing a key role in the coup. Since July, Turkey has arrested hundreds of military personnel, activists and journalists

Comment: Erdogan is bent on a complete coup purge and unlikely to be discerning in circumstances or intent. He lives and operates from a ruthless and authoritarian end of the spectrum where moderation and filters rarely apply. Returning these soldiers to Turkey would likely end up in their demise.