General staff reiterates commitment to rule of law

The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) General Staff released a statement yesterday expressing concern about recent news stories claiming links between some TSK members and Ergenekon, an illegal secret organization alleged to have plotted a government coup. The statement said the TSK, as an institution committed to the rule of law, one of the pillars of the Turkish Republic, could never have any relationship with individuals or groups involved in illegal activities. "The way the judiciary is being drawn into everyday debates concerns us," said the statement. "Sowing doubts about the Turkish judiciary is the worst thing that can be done to it." The statement comes on the heels of controversy over a retired general suspected in the Ergenekon probe who is awaiting trial being released from jail. The statement also accused some newspapers of trying to smear the military by running stories that violate the confidentiality of the ongoing probe. The General Staff also reiterated earlier statements rebuffing the testimony of former National Police Department Special Operations Unit deputy chief Ibrahim Sahin, who was also arrested under Ergenekon, who said he was ordered by a general to assemble former members of the unit to form a new group.