70-year-old intending Hajj pilgrim detained on coup charges at airport


Date posted: August 11, 2017

A 70-year-old prospective Hajj pilgrim was detained on coup charges at İstanbul’s Atatürk on Thursday night.

According to the TR724 news portal, Kıymet G., who is being held by police, was taken into custody while she was waiting to get on a Turkish Airlines flight for the Muslim holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

The suspect was reportedly detained as part of an investigation into the Gülen group, which is accused by the Turkish government of masterminding a failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016.

She is accused of using a smart phone application known as ByLock.

Turkish authorities believe using ByLock is a sign of being a Gülen follower as they see the mobile phone application as the top communication tool among the group.

Tens of thousands of civil servants, police officers and businessmen have either been dismissed or arrested for using ByLock since the failed coup attempt.

The military coup attempt on July 15 killed 249 people and wounded more than a thousand others. Immediately after the putsch, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government along with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan pinned the blame on the Gülen movement and initiated a widespread purge aimed at cleansing sympathizers of the movement from within state institutions, dehumanizing its popular figures and putting them in custody.

Turkey’s Justice Ministry announced on July 13 that 50,510 people have been arrested and 169,013 have been the subject of legal proceedings on coup charges since the failed coup.

Source: Turkey Purge , August 11, 2017

Tags: | | |


Related News

Academics sign statement saying ‘rule of law suspended’

Professor Ayhan Aktar, Professor Ersin Kalaycıoğlu and Professor Yasemin İnceoğlu, as well as 147 other academics, signed a statement saying that the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government cannot ignore corruption allegations by making up claims of a “parallel state” — which has no meaning in political science or law — and placing all responsibility of unlawful acts on the Hizmet movement, which was inspired by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen.

Turkey-Japan Media Forum kicks off in İstanbul

Many journalists from Turkish and Japanese media outlets will participate in the forum, during which the attendees will discuss the role of media in terms of multiculturalism and coexistence, the perception of Turkey in the Japanese media and the perception of Japan in the Turkish media, the relationship between media and democracy and new media tendencies in the digital era.

A Mother and Son Flee Istanbul for San Antonio

Before the live feed was cut from the Zaman building on that Friday in March, I watched police shoot rubber bullets into the crowd gathered to protest the paper’s seizure. Bloodied, the crowd retreated, still screaming for free speech but knowing hope was gone.

UN representative found evidence of torture in Turkish prisons

The majority of the abuse occurred during the times of arrest and interrogation, his report noted, adding that most of those who have been subjected to torture have not filed complaints “for fear of retaliation against them and their families and because of their distrust in the independence of the prosecution and the judiciary.

French court punishes death threats, attacks against Gülen sympathizers

Following attacks and threats against Gülen movement sympathizers by Turks across Europe, a French court has handed down verdicts punishing two men for vandalizing an educational institution and sending death threats.

Media Imposes Official Ideology, Creating Negative non-Muslim Image

Intellectuals and journalists who gathered at a workshop for a debate on how the media treats non-Muslims in society have said that the media has had a crucial role in imposing official ideology on society. “It is not that all negative perceptions in the media regarding non-Muslims have been determined by media bosses or chief […]

Latest News

Fethullah Gulen – man of education, peace and dialogue – passes away

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis

In Case You Missed It

New university in Pakistan with Turkish collaboration

Gülen movement discussed at EP in light of recent political developments in Turkey

Fethullah Gulen Statement Accepting the 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award

African firms signal increased trade at TUSKON meeting

Culture Day Celebrated In The Turkish Schools

How did we step into the missionary threat trap?

Turkey’s Erdogan Is Already Making the Most of His ‘Gift From Heaven’ After Coup Attempt

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News