Thousands of suspended teachers return to duty in Turkey

Thousands of teachers in Turkey who were suspended from duty during an investigation into alleged terror links have returned to their duties.

Eğitim Sen head İsmail Koncuk tweeted that the reinstating notices had begun to be sent to related governor's offices across the country.

Koncuk said reinstating notices for some 6,000 teachers had begun to be sent to governor's offices, adding that a majority of those teachers had been suspended using state of emergency powers. A state of emergency was declared by the Turkish government after the failed July 15 military coup attempt.

He added that it was "incomprehensible" that ministries had acted so slowly in returning teachers who were suspended for other reasons.

The notice to return to duty 2,253 suspended teachers out of 4,319 in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır has reached to the provincial education directorate, Doğan News Agency has reported.

In addition, Van provincial education head Kıyasettin Kırekin told state-run Anadolu Agency that 466 teachers out of 733 who were suspended as a part of a terror investigation in the province were returned to their duties and would return to their duties on Nov. 28.