Turkey extends emergency rule to maintain purge of Gulen supporters

Men carry the coffin of Zineb Ait Assi, who was killed in Istanbul nightclub mass shooting on New Year's Day. (Photo: AFP)

Ankara: Turkey's parliament voted overnight to extend emergency rule by three months in a move which the government said was needed to sustain a purge of supporters of the U.S.-based Muslim cleric accused of orchestrating July's failed coup, state media said.

Emergency rule, first imposed in Turkey after an attempted putsch on July 15 and then extended in October, enables the government to bypass parliament in enacting new laws and to limit or suspend rights and freedoms when deemed necessary.