TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Turkey on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, commemorates the 10th anniversary of the failed coup attempt carried out by the military, shaking the power of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for several tense hours.
The attack on the heart of the government actually strengthened the president's power, enabling him to make reforms to tighten his grip on the country through his administration.
On the night of July 15, 2016, the country was thrown into chaos as the military entered civilian areas, tanks lined the streets of Istanbul and Ankara.
Meanwhile, fighter jets flew low over major cities, the parliament building was bombed, and the military blocked the iconic Bosphorus Bridge.
Reported by Asia News, the Turkish Armed Forces arrived with the intention of overthrowing Erdogan's "one-man" rule.
The chaos of the coup attempt was marked by at least 270 deaths and more than 2,000 people injured.
In the midst of the crisis, Erdogan attempted to address the nation live and called on all citizens to take to the streets and defend the country.
After the coup attempt collapsed on the morning of July 16, 2016, according to a report by Al Jazeera, Erdogan and the government launched a purge of intellectuals, political leaders, military officers, and civil servants considered close to Fethullah Glen.
Despite previously supporting Erdogan, Glen eventually became his primary enemy based in America. Turkey accused him of being the mastermind of the coup terrorist network.
As a result, tens of thousands were arrested, and hundreds of thousands lost their jobs due to Erdogan's hardline stance. On the other hand, the official version states that the coup attempt was the result of several months of preparations by FET, which were accelerated after the general election on November 1, 2015.
As reported by SCF, human rights groups said that the legal mechanisms formed during the state of emergency were eventually expanded, although the initial purge targeted coup plotters and Glen supporters.
Journalists, independent media, opposition politicians (especially pro-Kurdish leaders), and civil rights activists have faced stricter legal surveillance and imprisonment as a result of the expanded national security laws over the past ten years.
The Turkish government claims that these actions were necessary to dismantle national secret networks and prevent Turkey from facing similar threats in the future, even though they involved quite extreme measures.
For those who support the government, this is a historic victory for the people's will against an illegitimate military junta.
According to critics, this is a significant turning point in Turkey's history, transitioning from a democratic and secular foundation to a highly centralized nationalist-Islamic executive system.
July 15 was then declared a national holiday, and to commemorate those who lost their lives on that night, the long-standing Bosphorus Bridge was renamed the Martyrs' Bridge on July 15.
Rania Felita Salsabila contributed to this article
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