A Salute from the US to July 15

The article recalls reports from June 2015, a year before the July 15 coup attempt, alleging that the Fethullah Gülen movement had infiltrated the Turkish military. It claims that between 2008 and 2011, military cadets were expelled from military high schools and the War College, and teachers were removed from student recruitment duties. The author asserts that children of Ataturkist officers were systematically eliminated from exams, allowing "fellow soldiers" of the Gülen movement into the army.

Following these reports, the author recounts being summoned by military prosecutor Ali Müjdat Eski. The author describes the encounter as a staged attempt to intimidate him and extract information about his sources. Prosecutor Eski allegedly used his authority to question the author about his claims of "fellow soldiers" of the Gülen movement and the ruling party being admitted into the army, implying the prosecutor was tasked with suppressing information about the Gülen movement's organization within the military rather than investigating it.

The author draws a parallel between this past event and current narratives promoted on state television, which often praise the AKP and the presidency in the context of the July 15 coup attempt. This is presented as a revisionist history, ignoring the alleged prior collaboration between the AKP and the Gülen movement in purging patriotic and secular military cadres.

The article notes that Prosecutor Ali Müjdat Eski, who interrogated the author in 2015, was later sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for "violating the constitution" along with other military legal officials. Meanwhile, former Chief of General Staff Hulusi Akar, who was allegedly complicit in the coup attempt, has since held prominent political positions and recently met with former US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joe Dunford in the US.