An army group in Turkey says it has taken over the country, with soldiers at strategic points in Istanbul and jets flying low in the capital, Ankara.

A statement read on TV said a “peace council” now ran the country and there was a curfew and martial law. There would also be new constitution.

It is unclear who the army group is. There are reports some senior army officials have been detained.

CNN Turk says President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is “safe”.

It did not elaborate.

PM Binali Yildirim had earlier denounced an “illegal action” by a military “group”, stressing it was not a coup. He said that the government remained in charge.