A Turkish coup

I awoke on Saturday morning to the news that elements of the Turkish military have attempted a coup to remove hardline president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan but had been unsuccessful. Flicking over to the newswires, I also saw that the military opened fire on unarmed protesters - this is disgraceful.

The Turkish military has a history of staging coups in this now secular nation when the government of the day is becoming less secular instead attempting to impose their brand of Islamic idealism on the nation. It would appear a section of the military is attempting to return Turkey to a secular nation, this has happened a number of times over the years but it would appear the coup doesn't have widespread military support and was defeated.

Instead of staying true to the teachings of the revered Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the modern Turkish nation, the government of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is taking Turkey down a dangerous road in an attempt to return Turkey to religious a religious state.