Turkish government says situation under control; air base used by U.S. closed

(CNN)-A violent, chaotic night in Turkey ended with at least 161 people dead, but the government said Saturday it remains firmly in control following a coup attempt by some members of the military.

Meanwhile, Turkish military authorities have closed the airspace around Turkey’s Incirlik air base — the site Turkey allows the United States to use for operations related to its air campaign against ISIS in Syria and Iraq — a U.S. defense official told CNN on Saturday.

This has led to a halt in U.S. airstrike missions against ISIS from that location, the official said on condition of anonymity. Turkish officials told the United States that the airspace has been closed until they can make sure all elements of the Turkish air force are in the hands of pro-government forces after Friday’s coup attempt, the U.S. official said.

There was one exception: A small number of U.S. planes that already were on missions before the airspace closed have been allowed to return and land at Incirlik, the official said, adding that there is no clear understanding about how long the airspace closure will last.

Earlier, the U.S. consulate in Adana reported that power to the base had been cut and local authorities were preventing movement onto and off the site. The consulate warned U.S. citizens to avoid the area.

The base is home to the Turkish Air Force and the U.S. Air Force’s 39th Air Base Wing, which includes about 1,500 American personnel, according to the base’s website.

Uprising ‘under control’

The latest developments came just hours after Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the situation in Turkey was under control, with all military commanders back to work.

“Our nation in this incident has shown a great resilience,” Yildirim said. “Those who have done this uprising should understand this reality that no one can play games with the stability of this country and the love of freedom and democracy.”

Chaos broke out Friday night when military tanks rolled onto the streets of Ankara and Istanbul and soldiers blocked the famous Bosphorus Bridge. Blasts rang out, leaving stunned residents wondering what was going on.

The Turkish military claim of a takeover was read by an anchor on state broadcaster TRT. She said the military imposed martial law.

The military said it seized control of the country to maintain democratic order, adding that the “political administration that has lost all legitimacy has been forced to withdraw.”

The attempted coup appeared to lose momentum after a defiant President Recep Tayyip Erdogan returned from a vacation at the seaside resort of Marmaris and declared his government was in control. But by the time he reemerged after hours of silence, dozens of people had died in the violence.

Of the 161 deaths, most were police officers killed in a gunfire exchange with a helicopter near the Parliament complex in Ankara, Turkey’s NTV reported. It said the building was damaged.

An additional 1,140 people were wounded, said Yildirim.

A total of 2,839 military officers were detained, a source in the President’s office said. And the Ankara chief public prosecutor’s office took nearly 200 top Turkish court officials into custody, Anatolian News Agency reported Saturday.

The officials include 140 members of the Supreme Court and 48 members of the Council of State, one of Turkey’s three high courts.