Ten years after the July 15, 2016 coup attempt, one of the most critical nights in Türkiye’s recent history, TRT’s production “A Century-Long Night” has brought the events of that night back into focus.
Based on Associate Professor Hüseyin Aydın’s work titled “A Century-Long Night: The July 15 Coup Attempt in Light of Documents and Evidence,” the production examines not only the clashes on the night of July 15 but also the process leading to the coup attempt and developments within the state’s critical institutions.
The first episode of the series pursues an important question:
Why did the coup attempt begin on the night of July 15?
A network built over years
The first episode of “A Century-Long Night” examines the development of the Fethullahist network and the human resources it built, particularly through educational institutions, as one of the starting points of the narrative.
The production then focuses on the organization’s network within state institutions, the struggles in politics and the judiciary, and the process by which its structure within the Turkish Armed Forces led to the coup attempt.
July 15 is therefore presented not as a military uprising that emerged within just a few hours, but as the final stage of a process that unfolded over many years.
A critical day for the coup: July 15, 2016
One of the most critical developments on July 15 took place in Ankara in the afternoon.
Official records from the period show that a soldier arrived at the headquarters of the National Intelligence Organization at around 2:20 p.m.
According to information that MİT later sent to the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry into the Coup Attempt, the person was interviewed at around 3:30 p.m. after security and identity checks.
The initial information concerned preparations for an action targeting Hakan Fidan, who was the head of MİT at the time, rather than a full-scale military coup.
However, the assessment of the tip and subsequent developments increased suspicions that the military activity in Ankara could be much broader in scope.
Extraordinary activity at General Staff headquarters
Following the tip, contacts began between MİT and the General Staff.
As part of the measures taken, orders were considered to restrict the movement of military aircraft and bring activity at certain units under control.
At that point, a critical situation emerged for the elements preparing the coup:
The possibility that the plan had been detected.
This development was also one of the major turning points at the center of the first episode of “A Century-Long Night.”
Although the coup attempt had been planned for later in the night, activity that began within the security institutions led the plotters to bring their plans forward.
The timetable was moved forward
One of the most unusual features of the night of July 15 was that the coup attempt began while people were still out on the streets, rather than in the early morning hours typical of traditional military coups.
The closure of bridges in Istanbul by soldiers, military activity in Ankara and flights by fighter jets quickly drew public attention.
This significantly reduced the coup attempt’s advantage of secrecy.
The ability of citizens to follow developments on television and social media, the ability of state officials to reach the public and people taking to the streets became some of the most significant challenges facing the plotters as the night progressed.
A tip changed the course of the night
One of the issues debated for years about July 15 has been the scope of the tip received by MİT in the afternoon and the steps taken afterward by state institutions.
During the parliamentary inquiry, different assessments and political criticisms also emerged, particularly over when the tip was received, how the information was evaluated and at what stage the relevant authorities were informed.
For this reason, when examining the chronology of July 15, it is necessary to distinguish between the simplified account that “the state learned about the entire coup attempt at 2:20 p.m.” and the nature of the initial information received by MİT.
According to information MİT conveyed to Parliament, the first tip contained information requiring verification about preparations for an action targeting Hakan Fidan. Subsequent developments and military activity led to changes in assessments of the scale of the incident.
The first episode of A Century-Long Night examines this process
“A Century-Long Night,” which began airing on July 15, 2026, revisits these critical hours as a dramatic production based on real events and testimonies.
The first episode traces the process from FETÖ’s network to July 15, with the question of why the coup attempt began ahead of schedule as one of its central themes.
However, one of the story’s most critical stages begins after this.
How did the plotters act after the tip reached MİT? What was the alleged plan targeting Hakan Fidan? Why was Güvercinlik Army Aviation School of critical importance?
In the second episode of “A Century-Long Night File,” we will examine the MİT tip that changed the course of July 15 and the hours that followed.
