Turkey will shut down its military academies and put the armed forces under the command of the defense minister, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday in a move designed to bring the military under tighter government control following a failed coup.
The changes, some of which Erdogan said will likely be announced in the government's official gazette by Sunday, come after more than 1,700 military personnel were dishonorably discharged earlier in the week for their role in the abortive July 15-16 putsch.
Erdogan, who narrowly escaped capture and possible death on the night of the coup, said in an interview a week ago that the military, NATO's second-biggest, needs "fresh blood." The dishonorable discharges included around 40 percent of Turkey's admirals and generals.
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