Turkish Officials Say Coup Attempt Appears to have Failed
Turkey's government is reporting the military coup appears to be over following hours of explosions, air battles, and gunfire.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in an interview over FaceTime with the CNN Turk station, downplayed the coup as "an attempt at an uprising by a minority within our armed forces."
Hundreds of Turks took to the streets to help government forces battle the military rebels, but now they gather in the streets to wave national flags in celebration of the coup's defeat.
A top Turkish official said the coup attempt appeared to have been repelled and things may be quieting down.
Earlier, Nuh Yilmaz, a spokesman for Turkish National Intelligence told CNN Turk that Gen. Hulusi Akar, the military chief of staff, was back in control and "everything is returning to normal."
Just a few hours ago Istanbul and Ankara were shaken with Fighter jets buzzing overhead, gunfire sounding off outside military headquarters and vehicles blocking two major bridges in Istanbul.
Soldiers also blocked entry to Istanbul's main Ataturk Airport, where four tanks were stationed, according to the private Dogan news agency. Two more tanks and a military vehicle were stationed in front of the VIP terminal, while soldiers seized the tower and stopped all flights.
Seventeen police officers were killed in a helicopter attack on police special forces headquarters on the outskirts of Ankara.
Many suspect the coup erupted over allegations of President Erodgan becoming more authoritarian in his rule. When the coup began, military forces issued a statement saying it had seized control "to reinstall the constitutional order, democracy, human rights and freedoms, to ensure that the rule of law once again reigns in the country, for law and order to be reinstated."
As the crisis unfolded earlier, there were reports that access to popular social media sites like Twitter and Facebook had been blocked within the country. No word if access has been restored.
