15,200 education staff suspended in Turkey

Turkey has suspended 15,200 education staff for alleged ties to an exiled cleric the state blames for last week's failed coup

19 July 2016, 4:34pm

1 min read

The Turkish ministry of education announced that 15,200 educations staff was suspended in relation to alleged ties to cleric accused of organising last week's failed coup.

It is not clear yet who those suspended are.

It comes after Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim vowed to purge supporters of Fethullah Gulen "by the roots".

Gulen, an Islamic cleric who lives in the US, has denied any involvement in the coup.

Thousands of soldiers, police and officials have been detained or fired since Friday's coup attempt.

Turkey's High Education board has also ordered the resignation of more than 1,500 university deans, state media reported.