Balyoz Gen. Doğan rearrested on coup charges

Doğan said he turned himself in so as not to leave his jailed friends alone and to avoid placing the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) in a difficult position. He directed threats at individuals who contributed to the exposure of the coup plot and also said his health was improving thanks to increased doses of medication. The retired general is believed to have masterminded a suspected military plot against the government titled the Sledgehammer Security Operation Plan. The document includes a subversive military plan to foment chaos in society through bomb attacks at the most frequented mosques in İstanbul, which would eventually lead to a military takeover.

“This sledgehammer will fall on the heads of those who fabricated it. I am frank. My health is improving thanks to a fourfold increase in the dosage of my cardiac pills. My blood pressure was 180 on Thursday when I was discharged from the hospital. That was the same the day before,” Doğan told reporters yesterday prior to entering the courthouse.

He spent a month in custody before being released at the start of April pending trial along with several other Sledgehammer suspects. Prosecutors then ordered his rearrest. Doğan, however, escaped immediate imprisonment after he was hospitalized at the Gülhane Military Academy of Medicine (GATA). The retired general was reportedly suffering from a herniated disc and numbness in his legs and was hospitalized in the neurology department of the hospital.

Doğan also turned down surgery for his herniated disc, leading to comments that his hospitalization could be an attempt to evade the legal process in the Sledgehammer coup investigation. His lawyer applied to an İstanbul court for the release of his client due to health reasons. The appeal was, however, rejected.

Retired Gen. Çetin Doğan was rearrested on Friday after appearing before a judge at the İstanbul Courthouse in Beşiktaş.

When doctors at GATA's neurology unit agreed to discharge him, Doğan requested hospitalization in another department. After examinations, doctors said there was no need to hospitalize Doğan for treatment and that he can exercise at home.

Fearing imprisonment, Doğan sought to be hospitalized at GATA's cardiology unit due to heart problems. Reports in early April revealed no problems with his heart. Doğan's cholesterol and triglyceride levels were normal.

The coup general was discharged from GATA on Thursday. “I will not leave my friends alone. I will continue this fight with them,” Doğan said on Friday before denying the authenticity of the Sledgehammer plan. According to Doğan, the Sledgehammer plan was fiction and judicial bodies are entitled to reveal those who have a hand in making up such fiction.

He also denied claims that he was discharged from GATA on Wednesday. “All records are at GATA. I was discharged on April 22. A doctor examined me and said he would cure the problems with my leg through an operation. However, he had to go abroad for a special occasion. … I did not request any special treatment in order to not raise doubts about GATA. I thank all GATA staff for their good behavior toward me,” Doğan remarked.

‘Seminar never exceeded limits’

Doğan reiterated his earlier claims that the Sledgehammer was a scenario evaluated during a seminar, not a coup plan. “That seminar never exceeded its limits. Hundreds of people have been arrested. They have been interrogated. If one of them says that Çetin Doğan plotted a coup or uttered the word ‘coup d'état,' I will hang myself,” he said.

He also added that ill-intentioned people were mixing the seminar with a fabricated Sledgehammer plan.

The Sledgehammer plan was allegedly drawn up in 2003 and discussed at a seminar held at the General Staff's Selimiye barracks in March of 2003. It was included in the third indictment prepared in the investigation into Ergenekon, a clandestine network charged with plotting to overthrow the government.

“Court experts are producing reports based on assumptions. They say that supposing that the plan is genuine, it is a preparation for a coup. However, I never signed the plan. I never signed the document, electronically or otherwise,” Doğan added.

The retired general also complained that he was accused of membership in a terrorist organization though he fought the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) for many years. “I have been accused of engaging in terrorism. I have been accused of membership in a terrorist organization. I am bitter over this,” he stated.

He added that the Turkish military would not resort to staging a coup due to the painful memories of the last military takeover in 1980: “Don't worry about it. The members of the TSK derived the necessary lessons from the past. The TSK felt the heavy outcomes of the coup that took place 30 years ago in its country and within itself. Since then, it has not taken a step toward pointing the gun at its own public or putting them in any difficulty.”

Doğan later appeared before the judge at the courthouse, who ordered his rearrest. The retired general was sent to Silivri Prison.