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Credit: Reuters/ Osman Orsal By Daren Butler and Can Sezer ISTANBUL | Thu Jan 5, 2012 8:36pm EST ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A Turkish court ordered a former armed forces chief to be remanded in custody overnight pending trial charged with bidding to overthrow the government, an unprecedented move likely to exacerbate long-running tensions with the military. General Ilker Basbug, who retired in 2010, is the highest-ranking officer to be caught up in the so-called Ergenekon case, a long-running crackdown on EU candidate Turkey's once all-powerful military and secularist establishment. Basbug told the court on Thursday he rejected the allegations, according to broadcaster NTV, describing the Turkish Armed Forces as one of the most powerful in the world. "We can say it is really tragicomic to accuse somebody who commands such an army of forming and directing a terrorist group," he was quoted as saying. After a health check he was set to be taken to prison to spend a first night behind bars -- a first for a former head of the military. The decision to send Basbug to jail came hours after prominent Turkish journalists on trial over alleged ties to the ultra-nationalist Ergenekon network said the charges against them were politically motivated and "a massacre of justice" in a case that has raised concerns over media freedom in Turkey. Investigations into Ergenekon have spiraled since they first opened in 2007, and critics accuse Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's government of scaremongering to silence opponents. The government denies any such motives. Several hundred suspects, including retired senior military officers, academics, lawyers and journalists, have been detained in cases related to it. Basbug was facing preliminary charges of "gang leadership" and seeking to unseat the government by force, state-run Anatolian news agency reported. "The fact that prosecutors are now touching senior generals is a turning point in the democratization process of Turkey. Many were skeptical that prosecutors would go this far," said Lale Kemal, a military affairs analyst for the Zaman and Taraf newspapers. "I would not be surprised if we see some commanders resign (if Basbug is remanded in custody) but I do not expect this to bring serious instability to Turkey," she said. "The military realizes it can no longer resist the democratization process in Turkey and deceive the public." Earlier Basbug, the first former chief of the armed forces to testify as a suspect in a criminal case in a civilian court, arrived at the Istanbul courthouse, looking relaxed in a dark suit, to answer questions from prosecutors in a closed session . FALL OF THE 'PASHAS' Nicknamed pashas, a title dating back to Ottoman times, Turkey's once untouchable generals have seen their influence decline as Ankara pushes reforms aimed at strengthening civilian rule and winning Turkey's accession to the European Union. The current investigation centers on allegations that the military set up websites to spread anti-government propaganda to destabilize Turkey. Turkey's military, NATO's second-largest army, has long seen itself as the guarantor of the country's secular constitution, and had staged three coups between 1960 and 1980 and pressured another government from power in 1997. The Ergenekon case is seen as part of a power struggle between Erdogan's ruling AK party, which has roots in a banned Islamist party and swept to power in 2002, and an old secularist establishment including military officers, lawyers, journalists and politicians. The court hearing the journalists' case rejected the defendants' requests late on Thursday to be released from custody - a decision which caused shock among around 200 journalists and students waiting outside the court. The next hearing is scheduled for Jan 23. Turkey is currently holding nearly 100 members of the media in jail, one of the highest numbers worldwide, in a crackdown that critics and rights groups say blights Muslim Turkey's image as a role model for democracy in the Middle East. "I am here because I am a journalist looking for the truth," said Ahmet Sik, who has written books about the infiltration of the police by an Islamist movement led by Fethullah Gulen, a Muslim theologian based in the United States and considered close to parts of the ruling AK Party. The EU and the United States have raised their concerns over the arrests of journalists in Turkey. But with the economy growing rapidly and Turks tasting unprecedented prosperity and political stability, public outcry has so far been muted. In Washington, the State Department said it was monitoring the trial and noted that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had repeatedly urged Turkish authorities to address concerns about freedom of expression and freedom of the media. "I don't think the secretary left the Turkish government in any doubt about where we stand on the press freedom issue," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told a news briefing on Thursday. "We have to see whether this trial goes forward in a manner that is consistent with international standards, consistent with international human rights. So that's the standard by which we'll judge it," Nuland said. Nedim Sener, an award-winning journalist who has written about police negligence in failing to prevent the 2007 murder of prominent Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, greeted observers as he entered a packed courtroom saying "Welcome to the theatre" and took a bow. Looking thinner and with his voice trembling at times, he said the charges against him were baseless. "I have put my life on the line by questioning Dink's murder. Our colleagues are in jail for writing news stories." If found guilty the two face a maximum of 15 years in prison. Both have denied the charges and say the evidence against them was planted. Government officials say the journalists are on trial for criminal activities, not because of what they wrote. (Additional reporting by Simon Cameron-Moore; Writing by Ibon Villelabeitia and Daren Butler; Editing by Philippa Fletcher and Ralph Gowling) World Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (0) Be the first to comment on reuters.com. Add yours using the box above. 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