Turkey seeks arrest of 55 people suspected of financing Gulen

ANKARA: Turkish authorities issued arrest warrants for 55 people, including businessmen, suspected of giving financial support to the network of the US-based cleric Ankara accuses of orchestrating a failed military coup in July, broadcaster NTV said.

The businessmen suspected of being linked to the cleric´s network allegedly carried large sums of cash, which they have called a "favour", back and forth between Turkey, Tanzania, Uganda, and Kazakhstan since 2014, NTV said.

Gulen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania since 1999, has denied involvement and condemned the coup. Police from the Istanbul financial-crimes unit conducted operations in 57 separate addresses on Saturday to root out sympathisers of Gulen, NTV said.

Authorities have detained some of the suspects in the operations, while others are still being sought, NTV said, adding that some were found to be using Bylock, a smartphone messaging app which Ankara says was used by Gulen´s adherents as a communication tool.

Turkey has so far jailed some 36,000 people pending trial and has suspended or dismissed more than 100,000 people from the military, judiciary, public service and others in the crackdown.