Ministry of Interior: No Individual or Official Has Entered Iran from Turkey After Recent Events

Hosseini Zolghadr, the Deputy Security Minister of Iran, stated that the failed coup in Turkey and the recent hostage situation at a police center in Armenia posed no security threat to Iran, and that no "individual or official" has entered Iran from Turkey in recent days. According to ISNA news agency, Zolghadr mentioned on the morning of July 28 that "from the very first moment of the developments in Turkey, the border provinces were adequately prepared to control the borders." This government official's remarks refer to the failed coup in Turkey that took place last Friday and Saturday, which ultimately led to the arrest of thousands of soldiers and judicial officials in that country. Zolghadr noted that Iran has restricted travel for its citizens to Turkey. He added that after Saturday afternoon, traffic towards Turkey has "returned to normal conditions." Previously, on Sunday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani reacted to the coup attempt in Turkey by stating, "The era of coups, guns, or tanks is over." After a group of Turkish military personnel attempted to close some main bridges in Istanbul, attacked the parliament, and declared a coup, Iranian officials expressed their opposition to this action. The Iranian Foreign Minister reportedly had three phone conversations with Mevlut Cavusoglu, the Turkish Foreign Minister, by Saturday afternoon. In Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan emphasized on Sunday that the process of "purging" state organizations and institutions will continue. During a speech at the funeral of a close friend who was killed during the coup, Erdogan stated that those involved in the coup have "nowhere to escape." He described a "cancer" that has grown in the country but asserted that the fight against it will not stop. Simultaneously, reports indicated that hundreds of Erdogan's supporters gathered around the venue of his speech, chanting "execution, execution" regarding the coup perpetrators. He himself stated during a speech at the Fatih Mosque that "the people's demands cannot be ignored" but added, "This is your right, [but] do not forget that we are not seeking revenge." The Turkish Ministry of Justice reported that so far six thousand people have been arrested, among whom nearly three thousand are military personnel; at least 29 generals and dozens of colonels and other high-ranking officers have also been detained.