Erdogan told Reuters the government's Supreme Military Council, which is chaired by the prime minister and includes the defence minister and the chief of staff, would oversee the restructuring of the armed forces. Obama, speaking at a news conference, said he told Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in a call earlier this week that the United States had no prior knowledge of the failed military coup. But crowds at rallies have demanded the coup plotters be executed, and the government says it must at least consider it. Erdogan, an Islamist, has led Turkey as prime minister or president since 2003. The state of emergency went into effect after parliament formally approved the measure on Thursday.

Source: dna July 22, 2016 18:45 UTC