A chaotic night has hit Turkey as an attempted coup has been carried out by a small group within the military. Gunfire and explosions rocked both the main cities of Istanbul and the nation's capital, Ankara. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan having arrived in Istanbul made the following statements at his press conference.

Turkis Prime Minister Binali Yidirim has said more than 120 people have been arrested over the coup attempt. The state-run Anadolu news agency said that 17 police officers were killed at a special forces headquarters. There were also reports of tanks being deployed outside of the Turkish Parliament.

In Istanbul, the gendarmerie closed the two bridges that connect the city's Asia and European parts over the Bosphorus Strait, with tanks reported to have been placed on the bridges. Television images showed people taking to the streets to show support for the elected government.

Early Saturday morning, Yildirim said that the situation in Turkey was largely under control. Yildirim called the coup attempt a terrorist act by gangs and illegal formations.