Turkish judge finds 43 soldiers guilty of trying to kill Erdogan

MUGLA, Turkey – A Turkish court on Wednesday found 43 former soldiers guilty of attempting to kill President Tayyip Erdogan during last year's failed coup, and handed most of them life sentences in the highest profile case related to the attempted putsch so far.

Judge Emirsah Bastog read out guilty verdicts for 43 of the 47 defendants, according to a Reuters reporter at the court in Mugla, southwestern Turkey. Mugla is near the luxury resort where Erdogan and his family narrowly escaped a team of rogue soldiers who stormed his hotel during the night of the coup.

The trial, which started in February, is part of a sweeping crackdown that followed the July 2016 failed putsch and is the biggest such case to reach a verdict so far.