Fethullah Gülen: Turkey is being dragged into a civil war


Date posted: December 18, 2016

Issuing a press statement following the latest terrorist attack in Turkey on Saturday, Muslim scholar Fethullah Gülen claimed that Turkey is being dragged into a civil war but underlined that sympathizers of the movement sometimes called after him would always remain peaceful no matter how they are treated.

“God forbid, it seems that Turkey is being dragged into civil war as a ground for ethnic and sectarian conflicts is built,” Gülen said on the hergul.org website, the online platform on which Gülen’s latest messages are shared with the public. He urged everyone who loves his or her country to be on the alert against such a possibility.

Gülen emphasized that the Hizmet, a.k.a Gülen, movement, has adopted “positive action” as a principle and that no matter how its sympathizers are treated, they would never pursue unconstitutional or illegitimate methods.

Despite Gülen’s consistent messages against violence, the Turkish government, led by the Justice and Development Party (AKP), has been accusing him of plotting a July 15 coup attempt and labeling the movement as a “terrorist” in the absence of any violent action by its followers.

Gülen has been living in self-imposed exile since 1999 in Pennsylvania. Over the years, a significant, yet unknown number of, people from Turkey have been inspired by his teachings promoting education and the peaceful coexistence of different faiths and have opened schools and dialogue centers around the world.

Turkey has been pursuing a relentless purge against the real and perceived sympathizers of the Gülen movement that gained momentum after July 15. Over 40,000 people have been arrested over alleged Gülen links while schools and companies that were run by the movement’s followers have been seized in the unprecedented purge.

Gülen previously argued that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan waged an all out war against the movement after the movement refused to support his bid for leadership of the Muslim world.

Source: Turkish Minute , December 18, 2016

Tags: | |


Related News

Pulitzer Prize equals five years in prison in Turkey

The statement in the headline belongs to Bülent Arınç, deputy prime minister and spokesperson for the Turkish government. Moreover, he is responsible for the government’s media policy. For Western readers, I should clarify that he was not joking when he said, “A journalist might win the Pulitzer Prize for his reporting, but he should face the consequence of five years in prison.”

Bosnians Protest at Student’s Arrest in Turkish Crackdown

Masetovic, a 21-year-old student at the University of Usak, was arrested last month in the western Turkish city, accused of being part of a network led by exiled cleric Fetullah Gulen. “At the time of the coup in Turkey, my son was at home in Bosnia and Herzegovina and had nothing to do with the events there,” his father Husein Masetovic was quoted as saying.

Another Police Chief Jailed Over Alleged Gülen Links Dies In Turkish Prison

Fifty-two-year-old Ahmet Tatar, a police chief who was arrested as part of an investigation into the Gülen movement in Osmaniye province, has died in prison, the TR724 website has reported.

Bedridden mother dies of hearth attack after daughter arrested over Gulen links

A bedridden 86-year-old woman dies of heart attack days after daughter, who had been looking after her for years, was arrested by a court over links to the Gülen movement.

Gülen Movement: An Alternative to Fundamentalism

Helen Rose Ebaugh, an American professor specializing in the sociology of religion, sees the movement founded by the controversial Turkish preacher Fethullah Gülen as both an opportunity for the West and a serious alternative to religious extremism.

Countering Violent Extremism Symposium draws significant participation

Jointly organized by Intercultural Dialog Platform and Gulen Chair at Ku Leuven in Brussels, Belgium, Countering Violent Extremism: Mujahada and Muslims’ Responsibility Symposium was attended by some 400 including academics, opinion leaders and NGO representatives.

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

Turkish school students raises pocket moneys to buy stoves for refugees

Charity Kimse Yok Mu to conduct 30,000 cataract surgeries

The Guardian view on Turkey’s repression: stop this stalemate

Turkish group among first to send aid to ‘Yolanda’ victims

White House courts int’l students as language festival concludes in DC

Panicky parents calmed over Feza Schools closure reports

Was prime minister able to convince the EU?

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News