Erdoğan rallies support at Türkiye’s July 15 commemoration with defiant address – photo report + video

ANKARA, July 15 — On the ninth anniversary of the failed 2016 coup attempt, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a relatively brief yet fiercely emotive speech in Türkiye’s Grand National Assembly, reaffirming his government’s narrative of resilience and national unity in the face of treachery. The commemorative ceremony marked the first day of a three-day press trip organised by the Republic of Türkiye Directorate of Communications for foreign media, featuring visits to key national landmarks in Ankara and Istanbul, and came amid heightened national remembrance.

A night that shook the Republic of Türkiye

On the night of 15 July 2016, a faction within the Turkish military attempted to overthrow Erdoğan’s government, seizing key infrastructure in Ankara and Istanbul, including bridges, airports and state television. The coup attempt resulted in over 250 deaths and more than 2,000 injuries, but ultimately failed after tens of thousands of civilians took to the streets in support of the elected government. The Erdoğan administration swiftly blamed the US-based cleric Fethullah Gülen and his network, referred to as FETO, launching a wide-reaching crackdown in the months and years that followed.

Inside the museum of a nation’s resistance

The day began with a visit to the July 15 Democracy Museum, located within the Presidential Complex. Opened in 2021, the museum is designed not merely to document the failed coup, but to cast it as a formative moment in Türkiye’s democratic history.

A walk through the space unfolds like a carefully choreographed narrative: the “Prelude to the Coup Attempt” hall outlines the rise of the FETO organisation, featuring classified documents, court evidence, and digital reconstructions. One installation allows visitors to simulate access to encrypted messaging apps used by coup plotters.

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The “Night of the Coup Attempt” section immerses visitors in the chaos of 15 July itself, with a 360-degree projection room that replays real-time footage and audio recordings from that night. Gripping clips of jets flying low over Ankara and civilians confronting armoured vehicles are interspersed with a series of deafening detonations and emergency broadcasts. The actual coup statement, infamously read on national television, plays on loop in one corner.

Perhaps most affecting is the “Martyrs and Veterans” gallery. Portraits of those killed are displayed with their personal effects—watches, prayer beads, mobile phones—and a “martyrs’ corridor” lists their names on a wall of black marble. One glass case exhibits the bloodied shirt of Erol Olçok, a well-known AK Party campaign strategist, who died alongside his teenage son that night. Interactive touchscreens allow visitors to hear testimonies from survivors and family members, as well as audio of the public call to resist delivered by President Erdoğan via FaceTime.

A final chamber, titled “Triumph of National Will”, presents the aftermath: vast public rallies, arrests, trials, and the eventual transformation of the political system into an executive presidency. The museum closes with an expansive quote from President Erdoğan etched on the wall: “15 July is the rebirth of a nation.”

Erdoğan’s message: “the righteous and the treacherous revealed themselves”

Later at the Grand National Assembly, Erdoğan took the podium following a Quranic prayer led by an imam. Notably, many front-row seats reserved for high-profile guests — including members of the judiciary, senior business figures, and diplomats — remained empty, prompting quiet murmurs among attendees. While past speeches on this occasion have stretched well beyond an hour, this year’s address clocked in at just under 15 minutes — succinct but sharply delivered.