15 July veteran Yılmaz Lale recounted that fateful night

Retired senior sergeant Yılmaz Lale, aged 56, who was shot in the left chest with gunfire from an armored vehicle in front of the General Staff Headquarters in Ankara on the night of July 15 and became a veteran, recounted that dark night on the 8th anniversary of the treacherous coup attempt.

Living in Izmir, Yılmaz Lale was shot by treacherous coup plotters with gunfire from an armored vehicle around the General Staff Headquarters on the night of July 15, becoming a veteran. Lale, who was taken to the hospital, lived for 15 days with the bullet in his chest. Veteran Lale recounted that night on the 8th anniversary of the treacherous coup attempt.

‘That period was a nightmare’
Lale, expressing that even remembering that night again is distressing, said, ‘It has been about 8 years since then. It is really difficult for me to express those feelings now. That period was a nightmare. It was a struggle for existence. You would either exist or perish. The existence or non-existence of the Republic of Turkey was at stake. It was the struggle of the Republic, established by our ancestors with great difficulty, to either collapse that day or continue forever. Fortunately, they did not succeed in demolishing it, and it continues. Thanks to the strength of our state, we ended that day victoriously,’ he said.

‘At the end of the day, I came out of the incident injured’
Yılmaz Lale, recounting what he experienced in Ankara on the night of July 15, said the following:
‘There was a struggle in front of the General Staff Headquarters in Ankara. I was the first civilian dressed person to go there. A large crowd gathered with us there. We had a great struggle with the coup plotters that day. We had casualties. At the end of the day, I came out of the incident injured. Fortunately, democracy prevailed. The Turkish nation prevailed. We did not let the Republic be destroyed by those fond of coups.’
Noting that he was shot in the left chest as a result of gunfire from an armored vehicle, Lale said, ‘Many people were shot along with me. I say I passed through the incident easily. There were those who lost their lives in my arms, who became martyrs. Our citizens need to learn from the July 15 coup attempt. History repeats itself. As long as we do not learn, we may experience more July 15s. It is necessary not to give a chance to coup plotters like the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETO) who attempted a coup on July 15. We need to stand by our state.’