The chiefs of staff of Turkey's military stepped down today as tensions dramatically increased over the arrest of dozens of officers accused of plotting to overthrow the Islamic-rooted government. The resignations of Turkey's top general, Isik Kosaner, along with the country's navy, army, and air force commanders, came hours after a court charged 22 suspects, including several generals and officers, with carrying out an Internet campaign to undermine the government. The commanders asked to be retired, the state-run Anatolia news agency said.
The resignation of so many top commanders for the first time ever in Turkey signals a deep rift with the government, which has been confident in confronting a military that once held sway over Turkish political life. The arrests of high-ranking military officers would once have been unimaginable. Click for more background. (More Turkey stories.)