Down Syndrome child accompanies mother in prison as parents jailed over Gülen links


Date posted: October 8, 2017

A 22-month-old child who suffers from Down Syndrome is living in jail along with his mother after both his mother and father were imprisoned in Konya over alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement, a report said on Saturday.

According to AktifHaber.com website, prison conditions are not appropriate for baby Enis, who suffered gastric bleeding when he was 8 months old and doctors had to establish vascular access for him.

Both of Enis’s parents were teachers and put in pretrial detention over alleged links to the Gülen movement, which the Turkish government accuses of being behind a failed coup last year.

Turkey survived a military coup attempt on July 15, 2016 that killed 249 people and wounded more than a thousand others. Immediately after the putsch ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) government along with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan pinned the blame on the Gülen movement.

Fethullah Gülen, who inspired the movement, strongly denied having any role in the failed coup and called for an international investigation into it, but President Erdoğan and the government 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.

According to a tally by TurkeyPurge.com, over 146,000 people, including teachers, academics, police officers, soldiers, judges and prosecutors, have been dismissed from government jobs, close to 127,000 detained and almost 57,000 arrested on coup charges.

Source: Turkish Minute , September 30, 2017


Related News

The next phase in Turkey’s political violence – third and coming coup could be the most violent

It has now been almost three months since the failed coup in Turkey. The events of July 15 were predictable, but they nevertheless mark a watershed in modern Turkish history. Still, it would be a mistake to view the coup as a single event. Turkey actually experienced two coups, but it will be the third and coming coup which could be the most violent and might very well cost Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan his life.

Kurdish initiative should not be suspended by provocative acts

TUĞBA MEZARARKALI/MEHMET TAYANÇ, BINGÖL The final declaration of a recent symposium on Turkey’s Kurdish issue, attended by Turkish and international academics, authors, politicians and leading thinkers, says that Kurdish initiatives aiming to resolve Turkey’s long-standing Kurdish problem by meeting some of the Kurdish people’s demands should not be suspended due to provocative acts. Organized by […]

Gulen has ‘no intention of leaving the US’

The Alliance for Shared Values “rejects the accusation” by Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus that Gulen is planning a move to Canada, it said in a statement on its website. The Alliance also reiterated its call for an end to attempts to stymie voices of democratic dissent, including journalists, academics, Kurds, liberals and participants in the Hizmet movement.

Gülen to file lawsuit against PM Erdoğan over defamation campaign

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen plans to file a lawsuit against Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for an endless smear campaign and slander, accusing Erdoğan of pursuing a concerted effort to foment animosity and hatred in society through the use of hate speech in rallies, meetings and TV interviews, Gülen’s lawyer said late on Friday.

Hizmet rejects claims it is linked to graft probe, says democracy is antidote to chaos

The Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV), whose honorary chairman is Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, has categorically rejected accusations that it is linked to the corruption and bribery investigation that has rocked Turkey for nearly a month, urging everyone to avoid language that only deepens the “dangerous polarization” in the country.

Anonymous witnesses fail to identify suspects they earlier tipped off as Gulenist

An anonymous witness in Denizli failed to identify any of the 145 suspects, earlier accused of being followers of the Gulen movement, during a court hearing on Oct. 30. The judge in charge loudly read the names, however Aslan did not remember any of them. The judge asked: “Did you tip off about some names during your statement to the prosecutor, is that right?”

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

Fethullah Gulen’s Message on the Anniversary of the Coup Attempt in Turkey

Peace Islands Institute hosts iftar in NY

Turkey: Babies behind bars

Germany’s dialogue awards find their recipients

Turkish schools in Africa important for strong relations

Erdoğan now at odds with once-closest ally

A battle for power in Turkey faces resistance in Senegal

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News