Istanbul (dpa) – The trial of Turkey's former military chief Ilker Basbug opened on Monday in Istanbul, with the former general facing charges of establishing a “terrorist group” to overthrow the government. Turkey's state news agency Anatolia reported that the trial opened with the reading of the 39 page indictment, and a request from Basbug's lawyer that he be tried by Turkey's Supreme Court. The request was rejected. Basbug, whose term as military chief ended in August 2010, was arrested in January this year following an investigation into alleged plots by the military against the government of Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan. The investigation is the latest in a series of probes into allegations that a secret group of senior military officers dubbed the “Ergenekon” group had been plotting to destabilize the country and overthrow Erdogan's Justice and Democracy party (AKP). The probes which began around three years ago have so far seen around 400 people arrested including 58 senior military personnel, scientists and journalists. To date, however none have been found guilty of committing a crime. Erdogan's moderately Islamist AKP came to power after a landslide victory in 2002, dismaying the fiercely secular military. The AKP has been re-elected twice, most recently last year when it won 49 percent of the vote. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/LDPoL Tags: Basbug, Military, Trial, Turkey Section: Europe, Latest News
