Qatar- The longest night of our freedom

July the 15th was probably the longest night in the history of the Republic of Turkey. In a bloody effort to overthrow the legitimate government and the elected president of Turkey, members of a sleeper cell from a terrorist cult attempted to stage a coup in Turkey. They began to block the roads and bridges, invading the airports, media outlets and government buildings, and more shockingly fired at innocent people who were demonstrating against this henious initiative to overtake the country. First time in history, Turkish parliament was bombed by hijacked F-16s. The Chief of Staff and several other high-ranking generals were kidnapped. Tanks and military helicopters were used to shoot innocent people and to intimidate them.

Yet, Turkish people were not ready to give up on their country. As news spread via social media, gallant citizens took over the streets with a strong standing against the coup. By dawn, soldiers that fired at the innocent civilians were putting down their arms and surrendering. The coup had failed. Democracy was protected by ordinary citizens that had gathered to oppose the coup. All political parties united in condemning the failed coup by issuing a Joint Declaration. Once again, Turkish democracy had proved its credentials to all.

Perpetrators, abetters and supporters of the coup attempt will be prosecuted and tried in accordance with the law. Hereby, it is important to note that it was not the whole Turkish army but a clique within the Armed Forces linked with the Gulenist Terrorist Organization (FETO) that staged this violent attempt. Now is the time to root out the cells, members of this organization out of the state structure.

Fethullah Gulen, the leader of this terrorist organization, encouraged his followers to infiltrate the military and judiciary in Turkey for more than thirty years. Cloaking this sinister agenda, Gulen has formed a broad network of schools, NGOs and businesses, and covertly infiltrated into public offices to overthrow the democratically-elected government in Turkey.

Gulen resides in the United States now and Turkey officially applied to the US for his extradition. Turkish people expects a cooperative attitude from the US authorities.

In the wake of the bloody coup attempt, the government declared a three-month state of emergency, a precaution foreseen by the constitution. Adopted by countries like France and Belgium in response to terror attacks, this measure is intended to expedite the legislative process and provide the authorities with legal tools necessary to bring those responsible to justice.

The state of emergency in Turkey is mainly related with the necessity of swiftly investigating the coup attempt and to root out the Gulenist structure within the state. This is a process meticulously handled so as not to harm the innocent.

Fundamental rights and freedoms are all secured. Likewise, all the markets in Turkey are functioning as usual. There is no constraint on trade and investments. Turkish ports and customs are operating normally. Production and construction sectors are expanding. In the overall, the economy has not been affected by the coup attempt.

Despite the fact that we all abhor this nefarious attempt, it brought, with the wish of Allah, some positive results. First of all, Turkish people acted as 'one” regardless of their origin, ethnicity, sect or worldview. The united reaction against this bloody effort could only be comparable to the spirit of Turkish Independence War in early 20th century.

Secondly, it started a speedy process of cleaning the veins of Turkish bureaucracy which will eventually serve the interests of the country and the broader region.

Third, restructuring of some institutions, mainly law enforcement, military, judiciary and intelligence units, has been launched for a more inclusive governance. I strongly believe that the solidarity of the people and better institutions in Turkey will pave the way for more prosperity and security for all of us.

This is not the first attack on Turkish democracy; it will probably not be the last. Turkey has grown considerably in the last 14 years. Along with its economic enlargement, Turkey has managed to become a key power in its region and beyond.

Apparently, Turkey";s success was despised by some circles and it became a target. Over the last decade, there has been attempts against Turkey, its sovereignty and its institutions.

We witnessed Gezi protests that aimed to undermine social coherence of the country. More recently we have seen rising PKK terrorism as well as attacks by DAESH.

Turkey proved to be resilient in facing these challenges. The coup attempt was the latest effort targeting Turkey and thanks to Allah it was foiled by the will of Turkish people.

Hereby, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to Qatari people and the leaders for their solidarity with Turkey. HH the Emir in particular was one of the first leaders who expressed support to our government and Turkish people.

HE the Prime Minister also called our Prime Minister and stated that Qatar is shoulder to shoulder with the legitimate government of Turkey. HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani visited Turkey to demonstrate Qatar";s support to Turkey.

This was the first high level visit to Turkey by the international community after the coup. Many other high level people exchanged solidarity messages with their Turkish counterparts. We have also witnessed on social media that many Qatari brothers and sisters expressed support to Turkey. This support will not be forgotten.

As I end up my remarks, I want to assure all Qataris that Turkish people stands strong and united than any time in recent history. The foiling of this heinous attempt after people";s brave reaction proved that freedom and the rule of law are constants in Turkey that cannot be annulled by force. This is promising to Turkey as well as to a region that has been captive to instability and turmoil for a long time.

Ahmet Demirok is the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey in Qatar