Former Turk Army Chief Says Time For Coups Is Over

The investigation has rattled markets and heightened tensions between the Islamist-rooted government and the military.

A former top Turkish general has said the era of coups is over and said an investigation into a suspected plot to topple the government is an attempt to ruin the reputation of the military.

Eighty-six people, including retired top military figures, are already being tried over their suspected involvement in a nationalist group known as "Ergenekon", accused of plotting to engineer an army coup with a campaign of killings and bombings.

The investigation has rattled markets and heightened tensions between the Islamist-rooted government and the military, one of Turkey's most powerful institutions.

The former Chief of Staff's comments in an interview with Hurriyet newspaper, published on Saturday, came a day after a military statement criticised the investigation for breaching principles of law, such as the presumption of innocence.

"The era of coups is over. It's not necessary anymore. Almost every week the (Chief of Staff) goes to the prime minister, and if there's a problem, it can be worked out with the prime minister or the president," Huseyin Kivrikoglu said.

"Step by step, the Turkish armed forces are being attacked. Sometimes by some newspapers, by some religious groups, and they've all chosen the military as its target."

Kivrikoglu was head of Turkey's armed forces from 1998 to 2002.

The Ergenekon investigation has started a media frenzy, with nearly 24-hour coverage and front page news stories reporting new alleged links to unsolved high-profile murders in Turkey over the past decades.

Earlier this month, dozens of people, including serving army officers, were also detained in the widening probe.

On Friday, a retired brigadier general was arrested.

The government and prominent members of the judiciary are at odds over the handling of the investigation, which many see as the ruling AK Party's revenge for a 2008 court case that sought to ban the party on accusations of anti-secular activities.

The AK Party denies the Ergenekon affair is being used to persecute government opponents.