ISTANBUL, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Turkish police detained around 30 people on Wednesday in the latest operation in an investigation into an alleged plot to overthrow the government, state-run Anatolian news agency reported.

Eighty-six people, including retired army officers, politicians and lawyers, are on trial in western Turkey for seeking to stage a coup as part of a shadowy organisation called Ergenekon.

Anatolian said the police operation was launched in six provinces, including Ankara and Istanbul, after an Istanbul court ordered the detentions as well as searches of the suspects' homes and workplaces.

Police in Ankara and Istanbul declined to comment.

The defendants in the coup plot case are accused of planning assassinations and bombings to sow chaos and force the military to step in.

Last month, Turkey's top appeals court ordered that a trial over the 2006 killing of a top judge in Ankara be merged with the Ergenekon trial, for which hearings are being held daily and which is expected to take months to complete.

Some government opponents see the coup plot case as revenge for court moves last year to outlaw the ruling AK Party. The party, which has roots in political Islam, has denied any link. (Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Charles Dick)

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