SILIVRI (AFP) - A Turkish court Thursday heard final arguments in the trial of hundreds of active and retired military officers accused of plotting to overthrow the Islamic-rooted government. The two-year-long case is wrapping up at the court in Silivri, a special complex near Istanbul, which heard the “final testimonies” of the suspects in the “Sledgehammer” trial, named after a 2003 military exercise. Prosecutors have demanded up to 20 years in prison for the 365 military officers in the case, which concerns alleged army plans to bomb historic mosques in Istanbul and spark conflict with neighbouring Greece to facilitate a military coup. The defendants argue that the alleged plot was a military exercise regularly held by the army, and question the authenticity of some documents presented to the court as evidence. The trial, which began in December 2010, stands out in Turkish politics because it directly attacks the secular army which was once untouchable in the predominantly Muslim country. A final verdict in the case is expected by Friday. At Thursday’s hearing, the judge listened to the defence of Cetin Dogan, former commander of the First Army and suspected of being the “mastermind” of the 2003 plan to drive the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) from power. “Here we see a process unfolding ... to make the soldiers of Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey) pay a price,” said the ex-general according to the written transcript of his defence. Dogan also branded the trial as “unfair and unlawful,” claiming that it was launched by supporters of a mentality perceiving all those who do not belong to their brotherhood as enemies.