Turkey’s Erdogan pardons elderly generals imprisoned over 1997 ‘postmodern coup’

Ismail Hakki Karadayi and other top commanders, from left, Hikmet Koksal, Guven Erkaya, Ahmet Corekci and Teoman Koman, who formed the military wing of the National Security Council, during a meeting on February 28 1997 (Burhan Ozbilici/AP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday pardoned seven former top military officers who were sentenced to life terms in prison over the ousting of an Islamic-led government in 1997.

The former generals, who are in their late 70s and 80s, were pardoned because of health issues and old age, according to a decision published in the country’s Official Gazette overnight.