PURGE

Turkey Fires More Than 8,000 Civil Servants in Latest Purge

Including many police officers and Justice Ministry employees.

Turkey has fired more than 8,000 civil servants for alleged links to terror organizations in the latest round of purges as the country's state of emergency is prolonged. The dismissals, announced Friday in Official Gazette, include 2,687 police officers, 1,699 Justice Ministry workers, and 631 scholars, among others. Similar purges have been ongoing since a failed coup attempt last July prompted a frenzied bid to root out anyone who supports U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who has been blamed for the coup. The latest purge was expanded to include anyone with alleged ties to the Kurdistan Worker's Party, which is considered a terrorist organization after numerous attacks on Turkish law enforcement and military. In total, more than 100,000 people have been dismissed in the ongoing purges, and nearly 1,500 organizations closed down. The European Union previously warned the Turkish government that there was “no excuse” for undermining “fundamental rights and freedoms” with such purges.