Describing his struggle with the coup plotters at the General Staff Headquarters and later at Akıncı Air Base, Güler said, "I was the problem for them. There is only one person who knows everything about them, and that is me." (Sabah, 10.7.2024).

THE ONLY MAN WHO KNOWS EVERYTHING

One wonders what Hulusi Akar, the previous Minister of National Defense and Chief of General Staff before Güler, thought upon reading these statements. According to Güler, the one person who knew everything was not Akar, who was the Chief of General Staff at the time, but Güler, who was the Deputy Chief of General Staff.

In the same interview, Akar supposedly asked Güler for guidance: "I explained the situation to the Chief of General Staff. He asked, 'What should we do?' I suggested we call the MIT (National Intelligence Organization) undersecretary to the General Staff." (Sabah, 10.7.2024).

Given this, the answer to the pressing question I have consistently raised about the July 15 coup attempt should be directed to "the only man who knows everything":

AKSAKALLI’S QUESTION

The July 15 Report by the Parliamentary Research Commission was published on its chairman Reşat Petek's personal website. The 667-page report reveals that the General Staff and the MIT knew about the coup attempt "at least" 12 hours in advance. According to the report, this foreknowledge prompted the FETÖ coup plotters to advance their plans from 3:00 AM on July 16 to 9:00 PM on July 15.

The importance of this early move is highlighted by the then Chief of General Staff Hulusi Akar, who stated that "due to the measures taken, the FETÖ members panicked and had to act early, which was a significant factor in thwarting the coup attempt" (TBMM Report, p. 335).

Now, to the crucial question: Could the coup attempt, known at least 12 hours in advance and thus thwarted by precautionary measures, have been prevented?

The person who originally raised this question is Lt. Gen. Zekai Aksakallı, the commander who played a critical role in combating the coup attempt. He said, "In times of crisis and extraordinary situations in the TSK (Turkish Armed Forces), an order is given for personnel not to leave the barracks. If this order had been given on July 15, the coup attempt would have been revealed" (Hürriyet, 20.3.2017).

Hulusi Akar did not answer this question. Since Güler claims to be the main problem for FETÖ and the person who knows everything about it, he should answer this question: Why didn't the Chiefs of General Staff, Akar and Güler, issue the order "Personnel must not leave the barracks" on July 15?

COULD AKAR AND GÜLER HAVE BEEN IN THOSE POSITIONS?

In the interview, Yaşar Güler also said, "During the Ergenekon plot, we lost very valuable, specially trained personnel, and we suffered a lot from this loss later. Because we lost them, FETÖ traitors and scoundrels found opportunities to take control. It was all a FETÖ operation, 100 percent." (Sabah, 10.7.2024).

With that in mind, let's add these questions: As the most valuable cadres were purged during the Ergenekon plots, did only the FETÖ members find opportunities for themselves? Would Akar and Güler have become Chiefs of General Staff without the Ergenekon plots? If the rightful owners had been in those positions instead of Akar and Güler, could FETÖ have attempted a coup on July 15?

And let's ask the obvious question: Without the political support of the AKP, could FETÖ have purged the TSK's most valuable cadres through the Ergenekon plots, and would the July 15 coup attempt have happened?