11 Mar 2009

Prosecutor indicts 56 more in coup plot in Istanbul

6:03 am on 11 March 2009

Fifty-six more people have been indicted on charges of plotting to overthrow the government of Turkey.

Two retired generals are reportedly among the suspects.

Eighty-six people, including retired senior officers, are already on trial for links to an ultra-nationalist group known as Ergenekon.

The state-run Anatolian news agency said on Tuesday the prosecutor in Istanbul has submitted a 1900-page indictment accusing the suspects of attempting to overthrow the government and inciting armed insurrection.

In the last 50 years, the military has unseated four elected governments - either in outright coups or by strong political pressure.