In Turkey, Judges Purged After Coup Attempt

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An unsuccessful coup to overthrow Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the weekend left at least 290 people dead and over 1,400 injured, as secular military forces battled with civilians loyal to the Islamist president.

After the violence subsided, approximately 6,000 military personnel were detained by the Turkish government, and 2,745 judges were removed from their positions.

Rather than seen as necessary action against putschists, some view Erdogan's response as a concerted effort to eliminate his opposition — namely a judicial branch who has thwarted his attempts to amend the country's constitution, and therefore consolidate his power.

Kim Lane Scheppele, a professor of international affairs at Princeton, suggests this might be Erdogan's "Reichstag fire," and that the coup has occurred at a suspiciously convenient time for Erdogan to purge the government of his dissenters.