Erdoğan now targets foreign countries for granting asylum to critics


Date posted: January 9, 2017

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has blasted foreign countries who granted asylum to sympathizers of the Gülen movement after they fled Turkey fearing persecution amid post-coup witch hunt.

Thousands of people including academics, journalists, teachers and doctors have escaped Turkey after the Turkish government proved to be knowing no boundaries in its post-coup crackdown on critics.

“Terrorist FETÖ members seeks shelter in some countries. While Syrians and people from Rakhine are being denied right to asylum, FETÖ and PKK members are served this in silver plate. A member of FETÖ which is designated as a terrorist group in our country could be appointed as a rector at a university in the US. What kind of a thing is this?”

Şerif Ali Tekalan, former rector of Istanbul’s now-closed Fatih University was named as the new rector of the North American University in the US.

The government accuses the movement of masterminding a coup attempt on July 15 while the latter denies any involvement. In it is crackdown, the government detained 80,000 people and arrested 41,000 while more than 120,000 people have lost their jobs so far. Listing the movement as a terrorist organisation without a court verdict to this effect, the government calls it FETÖ [Fethullahist Terrorist Organization].

Source: Turkey Purge , January 9, 2017


Related News

Top judge, paralysed after cancer surgery, under arrest at hospital

A Supreme Court of Appeals member until he was dismissed, Mustafa Erdogan has been kept in a holding cell at a private hospital since Dec. 30, 2016. His daughter Buket Erdogan said the top judge was denied right to “trial without arrest” although he was paralysed after a surgery on his brain.

Pro-gov’t Islamist ideologue says Muslims can’t accept West or EU

Hayrettin Karaman, a professor of theology and an Islamist ideologue, is highly respected by the government and is seen as the main ideological source of justification for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s initiatives. Karaman wrote a column on Feb. 13 entitled “The condition for support and friendship” in the pro-government daily Yeni Şafak, saying that relations with the West should be restricted to necessary engagement only.

A Year Ago Today: Teacher Gökhan Açıkkollu died of torture on his 13th day in police custody

Gökhan Açıkkollu, a history teacher suffering from diabetes, died of torture in police custody as part of a post-coup investigation into Turkey’s Gülen group. According to his father, Ayhan Açıkkollu, Gökhan was a diabetics patient while human rights defenders hinted at torture and maltreatment.

Gülen underlines values, rejects alliance with political party or leader

In response to a question on whether “the alliance” between the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and the Hizmet movement had ended, Gülen said, “If we can talk about an alliance, it was around [the] shared values of democracy, universal human rights and freedoms — never for political parties or candidates.”

Islamic scholar Gülen urges followers to remain calm in face of insults

Fethullah Gülen, the inspiration behind the Hizmet movement, which Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan continues to insult and target with a smear campaign, threatening to pursue criminal proceeding against it, has urged his followers to remain calm and avoid making inflammatory remarks about those who appeal to insults.

Gülen’s lawyer: Pro-government media ignores ruling of Supreme Court of Appeals

Nurullah Albayrak, the lawyer representing Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, said in a written statement on Monday that pro-government media outlets continue their false accusations about Gülen and members of the Gülen movement, pointing out that Gülen was acquitted in June 2008 of all allegations that had been leveled against him at that time.

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

‘The World is one family’: Students from around the world extend peace message at international culture festival

Orange County’s Anatolian Festival: A Meeting of Worlds

Somalia’s brightest compete for education in Turkey

21st century Pharaoh rises: The tragedy of Turkey’s failed coup

Why Mr. Gülen was targeted

Obama meets Turkish school’s award-winning students

Military coup documents contain plans to prevent works of Hizmet movement

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News