Turkey's Islamist government lowers the boom on secular military

Turkey has launched a crackdown on the military, arresting 50 commanders alleged to have plotted to overthrow the Islamic government of Prime Minister Recep Erdogan.

At least 49 military commanders were arrested on Feb. 22 for alleged links to a plot to overthrow the Erdogan government. The detainees were said to have planned to blow up mosques throughout Turkey in an effort to impose a state of emergency by the military.

Since the election of the Justice and Development Party in 2002, the ruling movement, with encouragement from the European Union, has sought to erode the authority of the fiercely secular military, which ousted four governments since 1960.