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Turkey Votes to Extend State of Emergency


FILE - A Turkish military special forces officer stands guard near the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern-day Turkey in Ankara, Turkey, Nov. 10, 2017.
FILE - A Turkish military special forces officer stands guard near the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern-day Turkey in Ankara, Turkey, Nov. 10, 2017.

Turkey's parliament voted Thursday in favor of extending a state of emergency in place since a failed coup in the summer 2016, Turkish media reported.

The sixth extension will become effective from Friday at 1.00 a.m., Turkey's Anadolu news agency reported. According to Turkey's constitution, a state of emergency can be declared for a maximum of six months.

Turkey will have spent a year and a half under emergency rule after the latest extension, during which time the president and government are allowed to bypass parliament in passing new laws and suspend rights and freedoms.

Roughly 50,000 people have been jailed and over 110,000 dismissed or removed from their jobs in Turkey since the state of emergency was first declared in 2016.

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