Turkish Army Morale at Risk Over Jailed Generals, PKK Fight

Turkish Army Morale at Risk Over Jailed Generals, PKK Fight (Ankara, Turkey)
Wednesday September 26, 2012, 12:19 PM
SELCAN HACAOGLU
Associated Press
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(c) 2012, Bloomberg News.

ANKARA, Turkey — The conviction of hundreds of Turkish officers for plotting a coup has dealt a blow to the army at a time when it's facing an onslaught by Kurdish militants and tensions on the Syrian border.

A court last week sentenced 324 serving and retired army personnel, including top generals, to as much as 20 years in prison for plotting to overthrow Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2003. The defendants pleaded not guilty, saying some of the evidence was faked, and have begun the process of appealing the verdict.

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