Süleyman Özkaynakçı

Greek-Turkish relations took a turn for the worse on Wednesday, with the Turkish Foreign Ministry and other senior officials accusing Athens of violating the Geneva Convention and of protecting terrorists.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry railed against Greece's supreme administrative court which granted asylum to one of the Turkish servicemen who fled to Greece after the botched coup in the neighboring country in 2016.

Suleyman Ozkaynakci, the Turkish serviceman who piloted the helicopter in which he and seven other Turkish officers fled to Greece following Turkey's failed coup in 2016, could be eligible to receive travel documents, according to the decision in May by the Council of State to grant him asylum.

Suleyman Ozkaynakci, the Turkish serviceman who piloted the helicopter in which he and seven other Turkish officers fled to Greece following Turkey's failed coup in 2016, could be eligible to receive travel documents, according to the decision in May by the Council of State to grant him asylum.

Ankara expressed intense dismay on Thursday at Wednesday's irrevocable decision by the Council of State to grant asylum to one of the eight Turkish servicemen who sought refuge in the country after the 2016 failed coup in Turkey.

Turkey's foreign ministry on Thursday accused Greece of protecting coup plotters following an irrevocable decision by the Council of State to grant asylum to one of the eight Turkish soldiers who sought refuge in the country after the 2016 failed coup in Turkey.

Turkish Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul has written to his Greek counterpart Stavros Kontonis saying "Greece is becoming a gathering place for criminals" following a court ruling releasing one of eight Turkish servicemen seeking asylum in Greece, Anadolu reported on Saturday.

A Greek appeals court has blocked the extradition of the final two of eight soldiers who requested asylum after they fled to the country following the July 2016 coup attempt, in the second such refusal by Athens to extradite all the servicemen.

A Greek appeals court on May 3 rejected the extradition of three more Turkish soldiers out of eight who requested asylum in the country after the July 2016 failed coup attempt, state-run Anadolu Agency has reported.

It is the second such decision by the appeals court in Athens, with the extradition of six of the soldiers having been rejected.

A Greek appeals court on April 25 rejected the extradition of three Turkish soldiers out of eight who requested asylum in the country after fleeing following Turkey's failed July 2016 coup attempt, state-run Anadolu Agency has reported.