Turkey detains brother of alleged coup mastermind

Turkish authorities havedetained a brother of Fethullah Gulen, a U.S.-based cleric theyaccuse of orchestrating a coup attempt in July, and issuedarrest warrants for 115 other people as part of nationwideinvestigations into the abortive putsch.

Kudbettin Gulen was taken into custody on Sunday by Turkishcounter-terrorism police in the Gaziemir district of the Aegeanprovince of Izmir following intelligence that he was staying ata relative's house, state-run Anadolu Agency said.

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The daily Hurriyet reported that Kudbettin Gulen had beenabroad recently but that security services learned he hadreturned to Turkey and he was then detained.

Several of Gulen's relatives, including a nephew, niece andcousins, have been arrested since the July 15 coup.

A chief prosecutor's office in Sakarya province, 150 kilometreseast of Istanbul, has opened an investigation into 148people over their suspected links to Gulen's movement, Anadolusaid. A court issued arrest warrants for 115 of them.

Police carried out simultaneous raids across 27 provinces todetain the suspects, it added.

Security crackdown

Turkey has dismissed or suspended more than 100,000 peoplein the military, civil service, police and judiciary over theiralleged role in the attempted coup. Some 32,000 people,including soldiers and journalists, have been arrested.

Ankara wants the United States to detain and extradite Gulenso that he can be prosecuted in Turkey on a charge that hemasterminded the attempt to overthrow the government. Gulen, whohas lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania since 1999,denies any involvement.

The security crackdown has alarmed rights groups and Westernallies who fear President Tayyip Erdogan may be using the failedcoup as a pretext to curtail all dissent and intensify actionagainst suspected sympathisers of Kurdish militants.

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