In an address to the nation late Wednesday, Erdogan announced a Cabinet decision to seek the additional powers, saying the state of emergency would give the government the tools to rid the military of the "virus" of subversion. Under the Turkish Constitution, the emergency measures allow the government to "partially or entirely" suspend "the exercise of fundamental rights and freedoms," so long as it doesn't violate international law obligations. Before the vote, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said that once emergency measures are invoked, the country would suspend its participation in the European Convention of Human Rights, an international treaty meant to protect human rights and freedoms. Even without the emergency measures, the government has already imposed a crackdown that has included mass arrests and the closure of hundreds of schools. Turkish state media said a further 32 judges and two military officers have been detained by authorities during the crackdown since last week's coup. In Greece, a court sentenced eight Turkish military personnel who fled there aboard a helicopter during the coup attempt to two months in prison for illegal entry into the country.
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