Turkey arrests Fethullah Gulen’s barber from 26 years ago
Date posted: April 15, 2017
At least 16 people have been detained in the western province of Izmir, including a 50-year-old hairdresser, identified as İ.D., who used to give haircut to Fethullah Gülen during 1990s.
Police carried out operations to round up 16 suspects in Adana, Antalya and Hatay provinces as well as in Izmir’s Cesme district, as part of an investigation into the Gulen movement, over the past days.
According to state-run Anadolu news agency on Friday, I.D. was put in pre-trial arrest along with 2 others over charges of membership to a terrorist organization while 5 were released on judicial control.
The remaining 8 suspects were still waiting to give their testimonies to the prosecutor on Friday.
The government accuses Fethullah Gulen and the Gulen movement of being behind the July 15 coup attempt. Some 115,000 have been detained over Gulen links since last summer while critics often raise the issue of guilt by association. Gulen, meanwhile, denies any involvement.
350 thousand students, in total, from 6000 schools around the world participated in this year’s AMC 8, recognized as the world’s most prestigious math contest involving middle schoolers. Among the participating Turkish schools, Adana Burc Schools’ students achieved a notable success by winning 13 medals. Turkey, South Korea, China, US, Canada, Russia and Taiwan constitute the award winning countries in the event.
Torture – Black Sites of Turkey
In a near-repeat of the CIA’s ‘extraordinary renditions’, the regime of Turkish president Erdoğan is kidnapping dozens of members of the Gülen movement from around the world. Victims are now raising a serious accusation: secret torture sites are part of the repression. A team of nine media organizations from eight countries, coordinated by CORRECTIV, investigates.
Turkish authorities use charges of terrorism to silence free speech
Journalists in Turkey are being charged with “being involved in terrorist activities” and “endangering state security” to justify the current crackdown on the media, as this is the only legitimate way for Turkish leadership to silence and censor dissident voices while shielding themselves from being seen as infringers on the freedom of speech and expression, unambiguously protected under international law.
PM Sipilä and FM Soini of Finland: Turkey needs to return to a path that respects human rights
Prime Minister Juha Sipilä and Foreign Minister Timo Soini [of Finland] have responded to a letter from the Finnish Union of Journalists. The Union’s missive asked the ministers to urge Turkey to avoid extreme measures in the aftermath of July’s failed coup.
AKP turns medical university into its headquarters
Şifa University, which was seized by the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government due to links to the Gülen movement, has been transformed into the AKP’s İzmir provincial headquarters.
Politics and communities
The state can no longer control the estate in its entirety. As a matter of fact, society and politics cannot be perceived as an “estate.” Thus, civil forces and communities want to be influential over decision-making mechanisms related to political processes and public polices, not over the state.
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
London-Based Turkish Academic To Run 10,000 Meters To Raise Fund For Purge Victims In Turkey
Gülen appeals for steadfastness against gov’t ban on prep schools [in Turkey]
Islamic scholar Gülen offers condolences to ferry victims
Ramadan Fast Highlights Shared Religious Practices
Conspiratorial minds, authoritarian politics
Erdoğan’s Fight against the Gülen Movement & The Demise of Turkish State Rationality
US Congressman: No Credibility In Charges By Turkey Against Gülen