Turkey Continues Its Witch Hunt Against Gülen Followers
Photos of the individuals arrested and detained. Source: Turkish Minute.
Date posted: September 3, 2016
MICHAEL VAN DER GALIEN
The purges continue unabated in Turkey. On Friday, 218 individuals were arrested on charges of being members of a terrorist organization. Another 421 were detained.
These arrests and detentions took place more than 6 weeks after the Turkish military staged a failed coup. In the meantime, not only the military officers responsible for the coup have been arrested, but the same goes for many others: people who had absolutely nothing to do with the coup, but who are simply accused of sympathizing with Fethullah Gülen, the Islamic scholar Turkey says masterminded the coup.
In what’s becoming a repetitive story, a host of journalists, lawyers, teachers and civil servants were among those arrested by the authorities.
All in all, more than 41,000 people have been detained in recent weeks, and more than 22,000 individuals were arrested. According to the latest reports, a sum total of 130,000 people have lost their jobs.
A year after the Turkey’s coup attempt, there are still many questions that need to be considered. Ismail Sezgin of Hizmet Studies, in this video, summarizes the findings that makes the coup attempt so curious and the positions of the Turkish Government, Gulen Movement, and Turkey’s Western allies.
Turkish gov’t profiling went on until 2013, report claims
The Turkish government profiled a large number of individuals whom it believed to be followers of certain religious and faith-based groups and monitored their activities up until 2013, a Turkish daily reported on Monday. According to the report, the profiling of individuals did not end in 2010 as previously claimed, but it continued between 2011 […]
World’s oldest temple closed to visitors due to excavation team links with Gülen
Gobekli Tepe, the world’s oldest temple at more than 11,000 years, has been closed to visitors for 15 months due to alleged links of the excavation team leader and sub-contractor to the faith-based Gülen movement.
Financial Times: Turkey’s crackdown on dissent has gone too far
More troubling is evidence emerging that his government is now using the attempted coup as a pretext to round up all manner of troublesome opponents, not just the Gulenists. It is also damaging the fabric of Turkish society and undermining its institutions, including the security forces. That is a dangerous move in a country whose immune system is already weakened by jihadism and which is battling armed opponents on several fronts.
81-year-old man sentenced to 10 years in jail over Gulen link
Mustafa Türk, an 81-year-old Turkish who has been under arrest over a year, was sentenced to 10 years in jail on charges of membership to a terrorist organization.
Der Spiegel’s recent strange attack on the Hizmet (Gulen) Movement
Ihsan Yilmaz August 9, 2012 Der Spiegel has published a piece about the Hizmet (Gülen) movement. Unfortunately, the piece does not look like a work of journalism. The wording, selection of so-called experts, and most importantly distortions, misleading points and false information make the piece very problematic. The piece starts with a claim that “Gülen […]
Latest News
Turkish inmate jailed over alleged Gülen links dies of heart attack in prison
Message of Condemnation and Condolences for Mass Shooting at Bondi Beach, Sydney
Media executive Hidayet Karaca marks 11th year in prison over alleged links to Gülen movement
ECtHR faults Turkey for convictions of 2,420 applicants over Gülen links in follow-up to 2023 judgment
New Book Exposes Erdoğan’s “Civil Death Project” Targeting the Hizmet Movement
European Human Rights Treaty Faces Legal And Political Tests
ECtHR rejects Turkey’s appeal, clearing path for retrials in Gülen-linked cases
Erdoğan’s Civil Death Project’ : The ‘politicide’ spanning more than a decade
Fethullah Gülen’s Vision and the Purpose of Hizmet
In Case You Missed It
Erdogan’s bid to close Gulen schools in Africa opposed
Retired ambassadors slam government orders over graft probe
My husband is being tortured and I am worried about his life
Turkish opposition: Enquiry against Gülen politically motivated
Mother detained over Gülen links while twins left in intensive care
Hate speech and its impact on the movement (1)
Kosovo’s Parliament To Probe Deportation Of Six Turks