@erlik95: September 12, 1980, the Turkish Armed Forces, led by Chief of the General Staff General Kenan Evren, launched the third and most violent military coup in the history of the Republic of Turkey. The military dissolved the government, suspended the constitution, and took total control of the country.Here is a concise breakdown of what happened during the 1980 coup:1. The Backstory: Complete Political ChaosBy the late 1970s, Turkey was on the brink of economic collapse and political civil war.Political Gridlock: The civilian government was completely paralyzed and unable to pass basic laws or even elect a president.Street Violence: Armed political factions from the far-left and far-right clashed daily in the streets. Street battles, bombings, and political assassinations became a normal occurrence, claiming roughly 20 lives every day.The Military's View: The army viewed themselves as the ultimate guardians of secularism and stability. They stepped in under the pretense of saving the country from implosion.2. The Execution: Operation FlagIn the early morning hours of September 12, the military enacted Operation Flag (Bayrak Harekâtı).Total Lockdown: Tanks rolled into major cities like Ankara and Istanbul, a strict nationwide curfew was enforced, and communication lines were cut.Arrests of Leaders: The military immediately detained the country's top political leaders, including Prime Minister Süleyman Demirel and opposition leader Bülent Ecevit, sending them into political exile.The National Security Council: General Kenan Evren announced the formation of a military junta called the National Security Council (Milli Güvenlik Konseyi), which would rule Turkey with absolute power for the next three years.3. The Iron Fist: Harsh ConsequencesThe military junta restored order on the streets, but it came at an immense human and democratic cost. It remains one of the darkest eras of human rights in modern Turkish history:Over 650,000 people were detained or arrested.230,000 people were put on trial in military courts.50 people were officially executed, and hundreds died in prison under suspicious circumstances or due to torture.Millions of citizens were blacklisted, banned from travel, or stripped of their professions.4. The LegacyIn 1982, the junta introduced a new, highly restrictive constitution that heavily limited civil liberties and granted the military massive political veto power. General Kenan Evren transitioned from military leader to the official President of Turkey, and limited civilian elections were finally allowed again in late 1983.Decades later, in 2012, Turkey finally put the surviving leaders of the coup—including an elderly Kenan Evren—on trial, stripping them of their military ranks and sentencing them to life in prison for crimes against the state. #president #millitary #turkish #soldier #army

Erlik

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Tuesday 07 July 2026 00:24:03 GMT