Coup Underway in Turkey

[Drew Phipps]

They knew five to six hours beforehand that a coup was in the works and let it go ahead, knowing, as they must have, that it would fail…

That's the tip off, for me. How would they know it was going to fail, unless it was designed to? What kind of loyal government servant would sit idly by?

[Peter Lemkin]

Very interesting and convincing article, above, by Escobar. That said, I remain somewhat confused as to exactly what scenario[s] were in play during the coup. Even with good intelligence of the plot before the fact, it is never a sure thing one can thwart it for sure.
If, as he indicates, both Russia and the NATO nations had foreknowledge [and US/NATO either LIHOP, or were in some way behind it], it really almost sets up a new 'cold war' scenario. Throw in Ukraine and the Olympics (and a dozen other things) and the World is getting to a VERY dangerous place now.
With the USA 'upgrading' all of its nukes so they can be used more 'easily' at low megatonages...it is total insanity, and we enter very very dangerous times. I'd trust no likely US President nor Congress to steer a safe course - actually quite the opposite. Whatever happened in Turkey (and is still happening) is much more important/dangerous than most seem to think! ::willynilly::
We are certainly living in 'interesting' times!!! :tampfeet::

[Danny Jarman]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KAxjZWy...e=youtu.be

Sibel on point as usual

A picture is starting to emerge that Erdogan is pivoting towards Iran and Russia, and they tried to dump him...but spectacularly failed. ::

[Magda Hassan]

A statement from the Turkish Communist Party about the coup events.

Communist Party, Turkey calls the working class to take initiative


The statement of the Communist Party, Turkey on the issues regarding the coup attempt on 15th July.
ICP, 19th July 2016
The Central Committee of the Communist Party, Turkey released a statement after its gathering on 17th of July where they assessed the latest developments in Turkey deeply and also discussed the state of the Party and its tasks at hand.
The full text of the statement is as follows:
The Statement of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, Turkey on July 2016
1. July 15th coup attempt was not a confrontation between ideologically conflicting centers , but involved at least two and even more state cliques with identical class identities and ideologies. It is not possible that these cliques would be totally unaware of each other's plans and actions just as it is not possible to tell one clique from the other. However the 15th of July attempt was not a bloody scenario planned by ErdoÄŸan as some claimed so. It was a real coup attempt.
2. The process that led to the coup has two dimensions. First is what could be described as the fight for "power" in the general sense between ErdoÄŸan supporters and Gulen movement, which has acquired a new dimension by the widespread purges of Gulenists recently. While the economic and political weight of this fight is increasing, the fight also has an international dimension and imperialist centers are supporting these fractions.
3. That most of the officers who participated in the coup attempt are mostly Gulenists and that Gulen movements has close connections within the US are facts. The thought that a coup will not take place in Turkey without U.S.'s approval as Turkey is a close military partner of U.S. as a NATO member is correct to a large extent. The main reason behind most of high ranking officers of the Turkish Armed Forces who are frustrated with AKP not attempting a coup is due to the support US administration has lent AKP.
4. This support has been reduced recently because of various reasons.Some elements with influence in USA and some European countries, have even started preparing for ErdoÄŸan's purge. The uprising of the people in 2013 with the participation of the millions, the damage on the interests of the system due to the tension created by ErdoÄŸan in large sectors of the society and finally the total fiasco of the Syrian policy deeply effected the relations between ErdoÄŸan and some imperialist countries. It is not possible to consider the 15th July coup attempt without taking into account this tension.
5. Coup plotters having connection abroad does not make ErdoÄŸan a patriot or anti-imperialist. As a politician, ErdoÄŸan has served the interests of the USA and international monopolies. At the moment, as a politician who has lost favor among the forces that had lent him support for years, he is maneuvering, entering into new alliances in an effort to save himself. The fact that ErdoÄŸan is now approaching this or that international axis does not change his class character and his ideological preferences. Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan is a bourgeois politician, he is an enemy of the working class, he is a counter revolutionary and he is no different than the coup plotters who wanted to topple him.
6. The coup attempt, the powers behind it, the methods used and its ideological basis, do not have anything to do with the interests of the people. The opinion that the country would have seen better days if the coup had been successful is baseless. It is obvious what a pro-American, anti-people coup would mean.
7. It is also nonsense to present the suppression of the coupe as a victory for the people and/or celebrate it is the "festival of democracy" in the tail ofAKP. This is an approach which does not question the legitimacy of the AKP regime and which ignores the class fundamentals of what is going on in the country.
8. The thesis claiming that Erdoğan gained more power after this coup attempt is true to a certain extent. Without doubt, Erdoğan got a chance to inflict a heavy blow to the Gülen Community; got the opportunity to play the victim once again, consolidated his mass base and tested the power of some organizations under his control. However he ended up with a seriously damaged state apparatus and he also had to face the fact that there is not any safe bureaucracy anymore because of the transitory of the integral cliques.
9. Under these circumstances, ErdoÄŸan may try a purge of not only Gulenists but the "Kemalist" elements that he has an alliance with in the two most critical state institutions, Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and judiciary and rely solely on his own resources. While it may be relatively easier to achieve this in various sectors of the bureaucracy, there are serious challenges in relying on own resources within the military and judiciary. Without engaging in an absolute and final showdown at the social plane, ErdoÄŸan can not make this move, which would essentially mean an attempt to establish an Islamic state. On the other hand, ErdoÄŸan does not have any other way out for being able to consolidate his own masses under tension.
10. It is also possible that ErdoÄŸan makes an effort to mend the relations with USA and reduce the internal tension after a short period of terror and intimidation and there are already some signals indicating that he is preparing to take those steps. Additionally, the expectations of CHP and HDP are also in this direction. This option is difficult because it is not possible for ErdoÄŸan to continue without politics of escalating tension, clearing the field for his radical elements. Otherwise, the opposition in the Parliament does not actually have any problem with ErdoÄŸan and his AKP.
11. In any case, there is a dissolution and a multi dimensional crisis regarding the hegemony of the capital. It's not this dissolution but the unorganized state of the working class, which is actually dangerous.
12. Another danger is the potential for the belief that ErdoÄŸan is invincible following the coup becoming widespread. This belief is accompanied by "scary" scenarios that spread like a virus and news stories, a large chunk of which are not based on truth, create a state of panic. AKP government has always been dangerous and it is clear that they are even more dangerous now. However the panic environment is helping legitimize AKP's aggression. In fact, neither AKP and ErdoÄŸan are as strong as claimed nor Turkey is a country whose future can be thrown into darkness over night. For example, in the so-called "celebrations" following the coup, despite all the calls, the number of AKP supporters on the streets was a limited one. The correct position is to be aware of the pending danger but not to create the panic, on the contrary, to attempt to utilize the dissolution for the benefit of the working class.
13. AKP and the fundamentalist threat should not be underestimated at all. It is clear that the period that opened with the assertion "Secularism is not under threat" carried the country to the edge of the abyss. However, there is the task of organizing a popular movement that is more potent and more "ready" to face this considerable threat. This task can not be accomplished by whipping up panic after long years of dormancy. That the opposition within the system is crowning its past inaction with the creation of panic now is unacceptable.
14. Under these conditions, the main source of power for AKP and ErdoÄŸan continues to be his opponents in the political system. The political establishment based all its plans on normalizing, transforming and getting AKP to fall in line. The attitude of some politicians who claim to be representatives of "left" in the Parliament is truly remarkable and worrisome.
15. Experiences during and after the 15th July exposed how ruthless the factions within the state can be. We all watched how the coup plotters knew no limits in cruelty. Then, we witnessed the barbarism of the government. All these can not be handled by the approach of "let them kill one another". Undetermined number of civilians have been killed and rank and file soldiers who had no idea of what was going on have been lynched. People will ultimately bring to justice the perpetuators of all these lawless actions, lynchings, and torture against suspects and soldiers who had surrendered and the rulers of those two factions who had cooperated together for years but fighting each other now will eventually have to face the justice of the people.
16. It is not correct to explain all these cruelties as a sign of "power". On the contrary there is dissolution, fear and confusion on the side of the government. The widespread fear can only be overcome by strong, solid and consistent moves, not by unorganized, foolish actions. And this dissolution can be turned into an opportunity for the people.
17. As we have always emphasized, Turkey can only be liberated by the unified struggle of the working class against the class hegemony presented by dark powers, not as a result of the clashes between dark powers. We refuse all kind of analysis and positions ignoring this reality. It is obvious that Communists will not give credit to quackery of the "victory of democratic powers" and the "cunning" calls to unite everyone against ErdoÄŸan. Among the people who are uttering the words "the victory of democratic power", are some who are also creating panic with rhetoric of "followers of sharia will cut our heads off" is a testimony to the level of confusion. We repeat: we will never cross paths with the representatives of the capitalist class, USA and NATO supported coups or agents of color revolutions. This wouldn't weaken us. An unorganized working class that is lured by fake solutions is what would weaken us.
18. The scale of the vacuum among the ranks of the people created as a result of the animosity towards organizing must be clear for everyone to see once again in a country where the Gulen movement, gangs in the government, interest groups, hit-men and even the mafia have the ability to act "organized". We can even go further to say that everyone who is for a classless society free of exploitation has to strive and work together for a state of organization that is persistent, continuous and has a collective mind. Not embarking on this task, legitimizing the inertia and indifference to this point is equivalent to being an enemy of the people. It is a must to strengthen the organization of the class, independent of the religious sects, Gulen movements, capital and imperialist centers. The ones who idolized the apolitical popular reactions, spontaneous mass actions that did not get organized, the ones that turned aimlessness and formlessness into an aim under the rhetoric of "Gezi pluralism" must have hopefully learnt their lesson.
19. The only objective of the Communist Party is to become an independent revolutionary organization that can change the balance of forces in the country by mobilizing during the coups or the reactionary campaigns. In order to achieve this objective all together, our only call to our working people is to mobilize, trusting only their own power and take initiative instead of watching this nightmare unfold.
Communist Party
Central Committee

[David Guyatt]

They knew five to six hours beforehand that a coup was in the works and let it go ahead, knowing, as they must have, that it would fail…

That's the tip off, for me. How would they know it was going to fail, unless it was designed to? What kind of loyal government servant would sit idly by?

Really? I don't find failure of a coup attempt in the slightest bit unusual. History is littered with failed coups. If you have advance warning of it, whether it be an hour or six hours, you are handed the opportunity to organize a counter-coup.

"Loyal government employee"... in Turkey? The problem here is that Turkey has a military coup about every 10 years or so: 1960, 1971, 1980, 1997, 2007-9 (HERE), and my guess would be that a great many government employees have learned not to be in the least bit loyal for fear of losing their head.

[Paul Rigby]

One interpretation of the puzzling nature of the attempted coup that can reconcile the inconsistencies is this - that the real target of its US sponsors was not Erdogan, but the Turkish military. In allowing Erodgan to survive, vengeance against the military, the historic guarantor of the nation's increasingly imperiled secularism, was guaranteed and is duly in train.

The cloaked objective of Washington's deep state, therefore, is the collapse of the Turkish nation-state, presumably in favour of a pseudo-Caliphate.

Extract from The Moon of Alabama's post, Wide Purges After Stage-Managed Coup Will Cripple Turkey:

http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/07/wid...urkey.html

The Turkish state is now crippled. The experience and knowledge of all those people purged now is irreplaceable. Any unexpected event, military or civil, will be met with confused and disordered responses. Despite Erdogan's current success hubris will take its toll and Erdogan's triumph will soon be followed by a deep fall.

But not before lots of Turkish military equipment, not to mention some of the US nukes in the country, have "fallen" into the hands of Daesh/ISIL etc - precisely as the CIA intended.

The Agency's Islamic Contras will then have strategic depth, direct access to the sea, and an armoury to die for.

In order for NATO (in effect, US) equipment to "disappear" & reach "Daesh," fires and sundry other "spontaneous" disasters need to occur at NATO bases in Turkey:

Huge fire breaks out near NATO base in Turkey

A massive fire has erupted near a NATO base in the Buca district of Izmir province in western Turkey. Authorities are investigating a possible act of sabotage, local media report.

The inferno started on Sunday evening on the border of the Sahintepe and Mevkiinde districts. The fire engulfed the grassy wooded area and is spreading closer to NATO's military base because of strong winds.

https://www.rt.com/news/353034-turkey-nato-base-fire/

Expect more of the same in forthcoming weeks.

One of the strongest elements for the claim that Erdogan either engineered or prepared for the coup appears to reside in the existence of extensive purge lists predating the coup. I hasten to point out that the preparation of such lists is standard CIA planning & would make considerable sense if the Agency wanted to steer Erdogan against particular individuals, factions, & organisations. It would be of considerable interest to know who compiled these lists & when.

[Magda Hassan]

One of the strongest elements for the claim that Erdogan either engineered or prepared for the coup appears to reside in the existence of extensive purge lists predating the coup. I hasten to point out that the preparation of such lists is standard CIA planning & would make considerable sense if the Agency wanted to steer Erdogan against particular individuals, factions, & organisations. It would be of considerable interest to know who compiled these lists & when.

Indeed. Indonesia comes to mind. Lots of handy dandy lists prepared for the foot soldiers to go round every one up.

[Drew Phipps]

Really? I don't find failure of a coup attempt in the slightest bit unusual. History is littered with failed coups. If you have advance warning of it, whether it be an hour or six hours, you are handed the opportunity to organize a counter-coup.

Five of the six Turkish coup attempts you cite were successful coups. A government agent who bet against the coup (when his job or even his head was on the line) would be betting against history. A government agent that "knew the coup would fail" is evidence that it was designed to.

I am also interested in learning the provenance of these "lists."

[David Guyatt]

[quote=Drew Phipps][quote]

Really? I don't find failure of a coup attempt in the slightest bit unusual. History is littered with failed coups. If you have advance warning of it, whether it be an hour or six hours, you are handed the opportunity to organize a counter-coup.

[/quote]

[quote]Five of the six Turkish coup attempts you cite were successful coups.[/quote]. But we all know shit happens. Coup's are dicey affairs. They are also especially dicey against a dangerous egomaniac like Erdogan, because he will have his revenge as we are seeing. I'd hate to be one of the now captured plotters, I really would.

[quote]A government agent who bet against the coup (when his job or even his head was on the line) would be betting against history. A government agent that "knew the coup would fail" is evidence that it was designed to.
[/QUOTE]

We must agree to disagree. To my way of looking at things, an "uncommitted" government official who has any sense would burrow down deeply and watch which way the wind was blowing before making a stand. It's simple human nature.

Meanwhile:

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/intelli...sCatID=409

http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/original...z4FL01cfOk

According to Pepe Escobar, between one third and one half of Turkey's military were implicated:

[quote]No less than 35% of generals and admirals in TSK the Turkish Armed Forces - have been caught in the sprawling net of Erdogan's Purge. If we exclude the Turkish navy, between one-third and HALF of Turkish forces are implicated.So we have 124 generals and admirals in jail and counting. 83 of these are brigadier generals and rear admirals. Roughly half of these were promoted in 2013 - and afterwards. This means these alleged coup plotters were replacing military who had ALREADY been purged (Sledgehammer, Ergenekon).
The bottom line; the TSK as we knew it is no more. Forget about war on Syria. Oh yes, they happen to be a NATO army as well. Cue to absolute freak out in the Beltway.

[/quote]

[Drew Phipps]

"implicated" doesn't mean "involved." "Implicated" means they wound up on somebody's list.