Turkey in chaos after coup attempt

A Turkish Army faction backed by tanks and fighter jets was waging a coup attempt against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday. But after crowds answered the President's call to take to the streets to support him, dozens of rebel soldiers abandoned their tanks in the main city of Istanbul.

People gather for celebration around Turkish police officers, loyal to the government, standing atop tanks abandoned by Turkish Army officers, against a backdrop of Istanbul's iconic Bosporus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared he is in control of the country early Saturday as loyal military and police forces quashed a coup attempt during a night of explosions, air battles and gunfire that left dozens dead. Photo: Getty Images

Commander of Turkey's "First Army" division said those attempting coup were small faction, and "nothing to worry about". But the military faction issued a statement saying that it seized control “to reinstall the constitutional order, democracy, human rights and freedoms, to ensure that the rule of law once again reigns in the country, for the law and order to be reinstated.” Photo: AP

Turkish security officers detain Turkish police officers (in black) in Istanbul, during a security shutdown of the Bosphorus Bridge on Friday. The head of Turkey's armed forces was rescued later after being held hostage during an attempted coup by a military faction which used tanks and attack helicopters to try to seize power overnight. Photo: AFP

Turkish internal security officers pass a Turkish soldier in Istanbul, during a security shutdown of the Bosphorus Bridge. President Erdogan blamed the coup attempt on followers of Fethullah Gulen, an exiled cleric based in Pennsylvania, whose “Hizmet” movement is regularly accused of plotting against the government. Photo: AFP

A man poses with the flag of Turkey in front of a damaged car, crashed by a military tank as people gather in Kizilay Square to protest against a military coup in Ankara, Turkey. Photo: AP

People protesting against the coup, try to protect themselves during a firefight between police and army forces in Istanbul. Airports were shut, access to Internet social media sites was cut off, and troops sealed off the two bridges over the Bosphorus in Istanbul, one of which was lit up red, white and blue in solidarity with victims of the Bastille Day truck attack in France a day earlier. Photo: AP

Smoke billows from the direction of the Presidential Palace in Ankara on Saturday. Photo: AP

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses during an attempted coup, in Istanbul. Photo: Reuters

Bullet cases from clashes are seen on the ground onBosphorus bridge in Istanbul,Turkey. Istanbul's bridges across the Bosphorus, the strait separating the European and Asian sides of the city, have been closed to traffic. The Army coup attempt left with at least 90 dead and 1,154 injured in overnight clashes in Istanbul and Ankara. Photo: Getty Images

A still frame taken from a video shows Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan speaking via a Facetime video connection to address the nation during an attempted coup, in Marmais, Turkey. Photo; Reuters

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seen amid his supporters at the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. Earlier, Turkey's military said it had seized power, but Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the attempted coup would be put down. Photo: Reuters

Forces loyal to the Turkish government fought to crush the remnants of a military coup attempt which crumbled after crowds answered President Tayyip Erdogan's call to take to the streets and dozens of rebels abandoned their tanks. In this picture, supporters of Tukish President Tayyip Erdogan celebrate after soldiers involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul. Photo: Reuters

Clothes and weapons beloging to surrendered soldiers involved in the coup attempt lie on the ground abandoned on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul. Photo: Getty Images

Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim speaks during a news conference, following an overnight attempted Turkish military coup, in Ankara. Mr. Yildirim denounces a bid by a group in the military to topple his government as a "black stain" on Turkish democracy. "The night of July 15, Friday is a black stain on Turkish democracy," Mr. Yildirim says, adding that "we have averted serious trouble." Photo: Reuters

People walk through Istanbul's Taksim square on Saturday. Situation 'completely under control' after coup attempt, Turkis PM Binali Yildrim said, adding that 2,839 soldiers are now detained on suspicion of involvement. Photo: AP