Ergenekon trials

The Ergenekon trials or the Ergenekon conspiracy,[1][2][3][4] were a series of high-profile trials which took place in 2008–2016 in Turkey in which 275 people, including military officers, journalists and opposition lawmakers, all alleged members of Ergenekon, a suspected secularist clandestine organization, were accused of plotting against the Turkish government. The trials resulted in lengthy prison sentences for the majority of the accused. Those sentences were overturned shortly after.

Since Istanbul Heavy Penal Court 13 (tr: 13. İstanbul Ağır Ceza Mahkemesi) accepted the 2,455-page indictment against 86 defendants in the first case against alleged members of the supposed clandestine organization Ergenekon on 28 July 2008 a further 14 indictments were submitted up until February 2011.[5] Until the fourth indictment the number of defendants had increased to 531 and more than 8,000 pages of indictments had been written.[5] Most trials were held in Silivri Prison. In June 2009, the prison's sport hall was converted for the term of the trial into a maxi courtroom with a capacity for 753 people.[6]

In April 2016, the Supreme Court of Appeals overturned the lower court's convictions because prosecutors had been unable to prove that Ergenekon actually existed[7] and whatever evidence presented had been collected illegally.[8]

  1. ^ "Ergenekon kumpası resmen çöktü". 30 November 2018. Archived from the original on 2 December 2018.
  2. ^ "12 yıllık kumpasta karar anı". July 2019. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020.
  3. ^ "FETÖ'nün Ergenekon kumpası çöktü". Archived from the original on 3 July 2019.
  4. ^ "Ergenekon kumpası çöktü". 30 November 2018. Archived from the original on 19 January 2021.
  5. ^ a b Ergenekon'da dava sayısı Masonlarla 15 oldu Haber7.com of 6 February 2011. Retrieved 17 May 2011
  6. ^ "Silivri Cezaevi'ne yeni duruşma salonu". CNN Türk (in Turkish). 14 June 2009. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
  7. ^ "The Overturning of the Ergenekon Convictions in Turkey; The country's highest appeals court set aside the verdicts against 275 people accused of plotting a coup against Recep Tayyip Erdogan". The Atlantic. 21 April 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
  8. ^ "Turkey's 'Deep State' Has a Secret Back Channel to Assad". Foreign Policy. 12 July 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2017.