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Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has declared a three-month state of emergency in the country in the aftermath of the coup attempt last Friday, The Guardian  reports.

According to the source, Article 121 of the Turkish constitution regulating the state of emergency, requires parliament to give its consent to the decision and sets a maximum period of six months for it. It allows the cabinet under the chairmanship of the president to issue decrees that have the force of law on matters relating to the state of emergency.

“State of emergency is not against democracy, the rule of law and freedom,” Erdogan said.

He also added that the move was necessary to allow “swift and effective” measures against the Gülen movement, which he claims was behind the uprising, and to “eliminate the threat against democracy”. Europeans “have no right to criticise” the decision to enforce a state of emergency, he said.