Whistleblower Major O.K. and Major General Hakan Atınç

Brigadier General Ünsal Coşkun, Commander of the Army Aviation School, posed a series of questions regarding Major O.K., who had gone to the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) on July 15 to report that a coup attempt would take place, during his testimony before the 17th High Criminal Court as part of the July 15 trials.

After stating that Major O.K., who had gone to the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) eight hours before the events of July 15 to report that a coup attempt would take place, was not permitted by the prosecutor’s office to give a statement, and that the emergence of the truth and the proper informing of the public had been obstructed;

He stated that he would have liked to ask O.K. directly the following questions in order to learn the truth, but was unable to do so because O.K. did not appear before the courts:

“O.K., despite the fact that you personally went to the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and directly informed the highest authorities a full eight hours before the events, what exactly transpired there? What actions were taken in response to your statements?

Why were these events not prevented? What, within this context, was requested of you? Were you not intended to be brought into contact with the Chief of the General Staff or with the Commander of the Land Forces, who processed the tip-off?”

Brigadier General Ünsal Coşkun emphasized that, following this tip-off, Chief of the General Staff Hulusi Akar had dispatched Commander of the Land Forces Salih Zeki Çolak to the Army Aviation Command. However, he stated that it was contrary to the ordinary course of events that Land Forces Commander Salih Zeki Çolak did not meet with the whistleblower Major O.K., even though O.K. was present at the same barracks while Çolak was at the Army Aviation Command.

Brigadier General Ünsal Coşkun emphasized that MIT Undersecretary Hakan Fidan was one of the key figures capable of shedding light on the events of that day. He stated that he particularly wished to ask MIT Undersecretary Hakan Fidan the following questions, but was unable to do so because he did not appear before the courts:

“Despite O.K.’s warning that a coup attempt might be underway, why was this tip-off reduced to a matter concerning only three helicopters? Following the tip-off, for what purpose was O.K. equipped with a camera and listening device and sent to the Army Aviation Command under the code name ‘postman’?”

Brigadier General Ünsal Coşkun stated that after Commander of the Land Forces Salih Zeki Çolak and Garrison Commander Metin Gürak had left the barracks, he was sitting in the office of Major General Hakan Atınç when the duty officer, Özcan Karacan, requested to meet him urgently. Upon stepping outside, the duty officer personally informed him that:

“A call had been received from the General Staff Headquarters stating that there were wounded personnel as a result of an attack arising from a terrorist threat at the headquarters, and that an urgent helicopter was requested for evacuation. He also conveyed that Hakan Pasha had been assigned under the command of the Land Forces Command,

and that I had been appointed as the Commander of the Army Aviation Command, and that

the message regarding the matter was in the process of being transmitted.”

However, Coşkun stated that he told the duty officer that it would not be appropriate for him to convey such an assignment to General Atınç before any official message had been received. Upon this, due to the urgency of the casualty evacuation and the terrorist threat, the duty officer Özcan Karacan entered the office and presented the matter directly to General Atınç.

He emphasized that General Hakan Atınç, reacting angrily, said:

“Well then, congratulations. Do whatever they order!”

Following this, Coşkun underlined that he first issued the necessary orders and instructions

to ensure that appropriate measures were taken in response to the alleged terrorist threat.

Brigadier General Ünsal Coşkun stated that another allegation directed against him was that Army Aviation Commander and complainant Major General Hakan Atınç had been interned and taken hostage with his hands bound.

Coşkun emphasized that, in his testimony, Doğan Atavcı, who served as General Hakan

Atınç’s driver, stated the following as a witness:

“When I opened the door, we encountered our commander. My commander was in his flight suit and was on the rest bed. When we made eye contact, he froze and I froze as well. He did not have his hands tied; he was lying normally on the bed.”

In response to the question, “Did he not have handcuffs on his hands?”, the witness replied:

“The handcuffs were on the table. When I saw my commander, there were no handcuffs on his hands; his hands were free.”

Brigadier General Ünsal Coşkun further emphasized that, in his own statement, Major General Hakan Atınç had indicated that there was water in a colored cup and a plastic handcuff on the table. Coşkun noted that Atınç had stated:

“They brought this water, but I did not drink it. That water and the handcuffs were delivered to the military prosecutor on Sunday as evidentiary material.”

Coşkun continued his defense by remarking:

“However, the fact that no conclusion was reached from the examinations conducted on either the handcuffs or the glass of water is indeed quite remarkable.”

Brigadier General Ünsal Coşkun emphasized that he had wondered why Major General Hakan Atınç never left the room that day or did not leave the barracks altogether. He continued:

“However, during the course of the trial, I came to understand that this was the best possible course of action he could have taken that day. Had he left the unit, he would have been accused of handing the unit over to the coup plotters; had he stepped out of the room or spoken to anyone by phone, he would have faced allegations of collaborating with the coup plotters. Whereas, although he could have easily left the room, by placing a handcuff found in the room on the table and waiting for someone to enter and ‘rescue’ him, he not only removed suspicion from himself but even acquired the status of a complainant. While it is clear and evident that he was not detained, it can be seen that these allegations against me, like the others, are far removed from the truth.”

The fact that Commander of the Land Forces Salih Zeki Çolak, while present at the Army Aviation Command, did not meet with the whistleblower Major O.K., despite O.K. being in the same barracks;

the fact that Major General Hakan Atınç took no action regarding the tip-off personally conveyed by Land Forces Commander Salih Zeki Çolak;

and the fact that, following the tip-off, O.K. was fitted with a camera and a listening device

and sent to the Army Aviation Command under the code name “postman,”

constitute clear evidence of a plot set up against personnel of the Turkish Armed Forces. Unfortunately, the fact that the Chief of the General Staff and the Force Commanders themselves played leading roles in this plot is, moreover, deeply regrettable.