Today in Turkiye

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Democracy and National Unity Day (*Demokrasi ve Millî Birlik Günü*, 15 July) is a national public holiday in Türkiye established in 2017 to commemorate the suppression of the coup attempt of 15 July 2016, in which a faction of the Turkish Armed Forces sought to seize control of the government. The night of 15 July has become a powerful reference point in contemporary Turkish political culture, and the holiday is marked with official ceremonies, candlelight vigils, bridge gatherings, and public commemorations of those who lost their lives resisting the coup. It is sometimes referred to as the *15 Temmuz Demokrasi ve Millî Birlik Günü* in official contexts.

• ✦Official ceremonies on 15 July include speeches by the President, bridge-crossing marches on the Bosphorus bridges in Istanbul (renamed the *15 Temmuz Şehitler Köprüsü* — Martyrs' Bridge — after the event), and candlelight vigils in public squares.
• ✦Mosques across Türkiye sound their minarets (*salâ* recitations) on the night of 15 July in remembrance of those who died, continuing a practice that began on the night of the coup attempt itself.