Turkey extends state of emergency by 3 more months

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said Monday a three-month-long state of emergency, declared after Turkey's failed military coup, has been extended by three more months.

Kurtulmus said the state of emergency would be extended as of Oct. 19 for 90 more days, with parliament’s approval, according to state-run Anadolu news agency.

The state of emergency started on July 20 — days after the failed coup attempt on July 15 left at least 270 people dead.

Turkey's government has blamed the coup on followers of Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania since 1999. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has demanded the U.S. extradite Gulen, and the case has created tension between the two nations, key partners in the war against the Islamic State.

Gulen denies any involvement in the coup.

Last month, Vice President Biden told Turkish officials in Ankara it would be "an impeachable offense" for President Obama to turn over Gulen.

"Under American law no president of the United States has authority to extradite anyone on his own power. Only an American court can do that," Biden said after meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım in August.  "We have no, no, no, no interest whatsoever in protecting anyone who has done harm to an ally, but we need to meet legal standard requirement under our law."

Biden tries to calm Turkish ally after coup attempt, extradition request

Erdogan has moved to consolidate power since the coup attempt, shutting down scores of media outlets, placing the military more firmly under the control of the civilian government and firing more than 3,000 members of the military.