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

Police, gov’t inspectors raid Gülen-inspired private, prep schools in Gaziantep

In another instance of a government-orchestrated operation targeting the faith-based Gülen movement, the police along with inspectors from several ministries and institutions conducted raids at eight institutions owned by the Safa Education Institution, which was established by volunteers of the movement in Gaziantep, early on Monday.

Q&A: Turkish Imam Fethullah Gulen

Fethullah Gulen, the U.S.-based imam who Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused of masterminding Friday’s failed coup, answered questions from The Wall Street Journal’s Jay Solomon via email on Sunday:

Islamic scholar Gülen responds to Turkish PM’s ‘lair’ remark in heated row over graft probe

Islamist scholar Fethullah Gülen has countered the Turkish prime minister’s remarks vowing to clamp down on “the ones in lairs,” escalating the heat of the war of words between parties amid the ongoing corruption probe.

PM’s order echoes 2004 MGK decision [to undermine the Gulen Movement]

The prime minister’s order that Turkish ambassadors “tell the truth” to their foreign interlocutors about the corruption probe has brought to mind a controversial National Security Council (MGK) document indicating that Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) agreed to a planned crackdown on the Hizmet movement led by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen in 2004.

AfSV Statement on the Turkish government’s detainment of Kutbettin Gülen

News of the detention of Kutbettin Gülen, the brother of Fethullah Gülen, is as unsurprising as it is troubling, and it is yet the latest example of the Turkish government’s persecution of innocent citizens in the wake of the July 15 coup attempt. Kutbettin Gülen has been detained on trumped-up charges used by President Tayyip Erdoğan’s administration to silence dissent and cement his autocratic hold on power.

Turkish parents worried about gov’t plan to shut down study centers

Working parents are extremely concerned with a planned move from the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government to shut down study centers, where children can spend time after school doing their homework with the assistance of educational professionals, as part of a law that will see private prep schools that help students in preparing for high-school and university tests close.

Latest News

Sacramento leaders gather for Iftar dinner in celebration of Ramadan

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

In Case You Missed It

Muslim voices against ISIS – Rita Cosby discusses Fethullah Gulen’s stern stance

“1915” by Prof. Ihsan Yilmaz (1)

Kazakh leader heads to Turkey to explain decision over Gulen schools

International Festival of Language and Culture 2016

Minister Yazici Visits Kazakh-Turkish High School

AK Party provincial board member resigns after insults

The genesis of the hatred against Gulen and the Hizmet Movement

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News