General and prosecutor charged in Turkey plot case

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Source: Reuters

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish prosecutors have charged a serving army general and a state prosecutor with plotting to destabilize the Islamist-rooted AK Party government, the state-run Anatolian news agency said late on Monday.

General Saldiray Berk, commander of the 3rd Army based in the eastern province of Erzincan, is the first serving officer to face trial in connection with the so-called ultra-nationalist "Ergenekon" organization, according to Turkish media.

Ilhan Cihaner, a state prosecutor who had investigated Islamic networks in the provinces, was arrested last month.

Cihaner's arrest caused a dispute between the judiciary and the government, which has threatened to call a referendum to push through constitutional changes to curb the power of judges.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE62112520100302