Turkey Closes Media Outlets, Fires Soldiers
VAUSE: A devastating attack in northern Syria has left 48 people dead. ISIS claimed responsibility for a suicide truck bombing which targeted a Kurdish defense complex area near the Turkish border. Kurdish officials still don't know how ISIS was able to breach that stronghold. And separately state-run media report the Syrian army has surrounded Aleppo, cutting supply lines to rebel-held neighborhoods. The regime is sending texts advising residents to leave, but a local photojournalist says there is no way out. The Turkish government is widening its crackdown after a failed coup almost two weeks ago. State-run media report nearly 1700 soldiers have been fired including 87 generals. Turkey is also shutting down dozens of TV channels, radio stations and newspapers. Ian Lee joins us live this hour from Istanbul. So, Ian, Erdogan has clamped down on schools, universities, the police, the military, now the media. How far is he prepared to go?</s>IAN LEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, as far as necessary, according to the Turkish government. They accuse these institutions of either belonging to the Gulenist movement or being sympathetic to it. The Gulen movement being the movement that is behind the cleric in the United States, Fethullah Gulen. An enemy of Erdogan, considered a terrorist organization here. But this crackdown has a lot of people concerned, including rights groups and the international community. Over 15,000 people have been detained in this crackdown, including over 9,000 soldiers. There also have been allegations of abuse in these prisons, going as far as sleep deprivation, people going without food in stress positions, and in some rare cases also allegations of rape. So some very serious stuff there, but the Turkish government denying that, saying that these people are being treated fairly and that this is a purge of those elements that were behind the coup in Turkey -- John.</s>VAUSE: And when we look at the crackdown which is currently under way on media organizations, how widespread is this?</s>LEE: It is very fairly widespread. These are small to medium outlets, news agencies, which include three news agencies, 16 TV channels, 23 radio stations, 45 newspapers, 15 magazines, and 29 publishing houses, and one really stands out, which Cihan, which is a news agency that monitors the elections. It's one of three big ones. And one of the three that isn't belonging either to the state or Erdogan. So there is some concern there, also, about that. But these are news agencies that the government says are Gulenist, but also this is very concerning as Erdogan has been accused and is accused of having authoritarian tendencies, that this crackdown on the media is just going after opposition voices that he does not agree with.</s>VAUSE: Very quickly, that meeting coming up with the Supreme Military Council. What are the changes now expected within the Turkish military?</s>LEE: This is very interesting. And it's happening later today. It was initially scheduled for August, and a lot of people say this was the reason really behind the coup was that there was going to be a shakeup within the military structure and that those elements in the military preempted that with that coup. But today we are expecting a reshuffling of the military. Remember, a third of the generals here in Turkey have been arrested, accused of being behind this coup. So we're expecting changes within the structure of the military. But there are some major questions, as Turkey has a raging civil war on its southern border. You have Syria. You have Iraq. Also there fighting Kurdish separatists in the southeast. So the military readiness will be a high priority. So we'll be watching that meeting later today.</s>VAUSE: Ian Lee, thank you. Ian Lee live this hour in Istanbul. A short break here, when we come back, to Rio they go. Russian athletes are off to the Olympics, but some don't even know if they'll be allowed to compete. Also ahead, we'll talk to a former FBI agent about security in Rio. What's the bigger concern, terrorism or being mugged?