Turkey sacks 2,766 civil servants for ‘terror’ links

ANKARA, Dec 24 (Al Jazeera): Turkey has dismissed 2,766 people from their posts in state institutions over alleged links to "terror" organisations, according to an emergency decree published in the country's official legal database.

On Sunday, a decree in the Official Gazette said 637 military, 360 gendarmerie personnel, 61 police and four coastguard members were among those sacked.

Some 341 people were dismissed from the Directorate of Religious Affairs.

The rest were civil servants from other institutions.

The decree also said 115 employees who were dismissed in the past were reinstated.

Turkey has arrested or sacked tens of thousands of people from state institutions after a failed coup attempt in July 2016.

Local and international rights groups as well as Turkey's Western allies accuse President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government of using the failed coup as a pretext to silence opposition in the country and tighten its grip on power.