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Turkey’s three-month state of emergency in force – Official Gazette

Storyline:National News, World

A three-month state of emergency in Turkey, which authorities say will enable them to take swift, effective action against those responsible for last week’s failed military coup, came into force on Thursday after it was published in the Official Gazette.

The state of emergency began at 1 a.m. (2200 GMT on Wednesday).

President Tayyip Erdogan, who has launched mass purges of state institutions since the July 15 coup attempt, said the emergency was fully in line with Turkey’s constitution and did not violate the rule of law or basic freedoms of citizens.

The state of emergency will allow the president and cabinet to bypass parliament in passing new laws and to limit or suspend rights and freedoms as they deem necessary.

Erdogan announced the emergency in a live television broadcast in front of government ministers after a meeting of the National Security Council that lasted nearly five hours on Wednesday