Ankara, Oct 14 (IANS): Turkish authorities on Friday ordered the arrest of 189 judges and prosecutors suspected of supporting the alleged mastermind behind the failed military coup d'etat in July.

Over the course of the operation to track down supporters of the exiled Fethullah Gulen, Turkish police raided various courthouses and the premises of the Turkish Supreme court in Ankara, Efe news reported.

The arrested magistrates and prosecutors were assigned to various Ankara courthouses, the Supreme Court and the Danistay, Turkey's top judicial administrative authority.

The arrested members of the judiciary were suspected of belonging to the Gulen network, as they all used "Bylock", an encrypted messaging application supposedly custom-developed for the Gulen organisation.

Since July, some 3,400 judges and attorneys have been dismissed from their posts and a large percentage remain in custody while they await to appear in court.

After the failure of the coup bid, a third of Turkey's 365 generals and admirals were arrested on accusation of conspiracy to topple the government.