Turkish government sacks 470 policeman

Some 470 policemen in the Turkish capital of Ankara were replaced or dismissed in the government's reaction to a graft probe that has shaken-up the nation, local media reported Wednesday. Thousands of Turkish police officials have been removed or reassigned, along with some prosecutors, in the government's crackdown on corruption arrests, according to the report. Mass purge followed the probe that started in mid-December, when the first case led to the resignation of three ministers whose sons were alleged of bribery. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan sees the graft probe as a conspiracy to topple his government and accuses outside forces of working in tandem with domestic collaborators to oust him. The investigation exposed a bitter feud between Erdogan and an influential U.S.-based Muslim cleric, Fetullah Gulen, who wields substantial influence over Turkey's police and judiciary.