Turkish President Erdogan declares coup attempt over

As dawn broke in Istanbul on Saturday, Turkey`s largest city, it was still unclear whether an attempt by the military to wrest control from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had been successful.

A defiant Erdogan addressed crowds in the city, telling them that the coup had been quashed. ‘The government is in control,’ he told supporters.

Overnight, opposition soldiers had attempted to seize control in a number of locations across the country, including the capital Ankara, reports CNN.

Turkish media reported that 42 people - the majority of whom were police officers - were killed in Ankara in a gunfire exchange with a helicopter near the parliament complex. The report, from TV station NTV, cited the attorney general’s office.

Erdogan, who had traveled overnight from the seaside resort of Marmaris addressed the country Saturday from Istanbul’s Ataturk airport, calling the attempt ‘treason.’

While senior government voices were insisting the coup attempt was under control, the situation remains confusing. Reports from witnesses and posted on social media indicate conflict was ongoing.

Witness Katherine Cohen, an American who’s staying in an Istanbul hotel, told CNN she heard a loud explosion as the sun rose, and gunfire and jets all through the night.

Erdogan addressed Fethullah Gulen, a cleric and former ally who is now who lives in exile in Pennsylvania, who he accused of masterminding the coup. ‘Now I’m addressing those in Pennsylvania,’ he said.

‘The betrayal you have shown to this nation and to this community, that’s enough. If you have the courage, come back to your country. If you can. You will not have the means to turn this country into a mess from where you are.’

The Gulen group denied all involvement.