Turkey arrests 12 on coup suspicions

ISTANBUL, Turkey, Feb. 25 (UPI) -- Twelve Turkish military officers have been jailed in Istanbul, charged with plotting a government coup in 2003 with dozens more undergoing questioning.

Among those jailed are three admirals, two retired admirals, a retired army officer and two retired colonels, Euronews.net reported Thursday.

The investigation into the nebulous plot named Sledgehammer, which allegedly planned to overthrow the country's Islamist-inspired government, has resulted in the interrogation of scores of current and former military officers in the past month, CNN said Thursday.

Turkey's secular military has overthrown four governments in the past 50 years, the report said.

President Abdullah Gul summoned military chief Gen. Illker Basbug and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for talks in Istanbul, but there was no initial indication of what was said.

The investigation began in January after the alleged plot was reported by the Taraf newspaper, which didn't name any sources.