Dismissed police officer dies of heart attack in German refugee camp
Date posted: February 7, 2018
Ali Ünlü, a 42-year-old former police officer who was earlier dismissed from his job as part of the government’s post-coup crackdown, died of heart attack in a refugee camp in Stuttgart, according to media and people with knowledge of the incident.
Ünlü, one of over 150,000 people who have lost their jobs over alleged ties to the Gulen movement, escaped a further crackdown in Turkey to Germany, Aktif Haber online news portal said Tuesday.
Several Twitter accounts claimed that Ünlü ended up in a refugee camp in Stuttgart where he later passed away following a heart attack.
Ünlü was buried in his hometown of Kaymakli, Nigde. Relatives covered his coffin with a Turkish flag and police uniforms.
Turkish government accuses Gulen movement of masterminding the July 15, 2016 failed coup while the latter denies involvement. Thousands of people have fled Turkey to overseas countries to seek safety from the government’s post-coup persecution.
Turkey’s most influential and widely respected civil society organisation, the Hizmet movement, is under continual attack by PM Erdoğan who accuses it of seeking to establish a “parallel state”. Such rhetoric and ‘securitization’ may destroy the democratic fabric of Turkish society.
Turkish Intelligence Agency (MIT) at center of political storm
Indeed, the MIT’s tarnished reputation can be viewed as collateral damage from the AKP’s wars with former allies (the Gulen movement) or an unintended consequence of the government’s haphazard propaganda since Gezi. The agency is seen as the nexus of the initial friction between the Gulen movement and the AKP.
EU report expresses concern about purge against Gülen movement
The progress report on Turkey that was issued on Wednesday by the European Commission expressed concern over the Turkish government’s purge against Gülen movement members, saying “any allegation of wrongdoing needs to be examined with due process, transparent procedures, and the right of every individual to a fair trial or equitable administrative process should be safeguarded.”
The Hizmet movement, social democracy, the religious left
The organizers announced that the conference would on the first day focus on “the Hizmet movement, inspired by the Turkish preacher Fethullah Gülen, which is portrayed by many as an example of modern, ‘enlightened’ Islam, oriented towards dialogue and co-operation rather than conflict.
What is Islam’s Gulen movement? By Edward Stourton, BBC
Turkey’s Gulen movement, which promotes service to the common good, may have grown into the world’s biggest Muslim network. Is it the modern face of Islam, or are there more sinister undercurrents?
Deputy PM Bülent Arınç says row with Hizmet movement would do no good
Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç has commented for the first time on allegations that there are tensions between the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and the Hizmet movement, saying, “We don’t need to get into a verbal row that might hurt relations between the government and the movement; we don’t need it, it would hurt us.” He also said Erdoğan holds Gülen in esteem.
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
Deputy PM denies profiling of citizens in gov’t, private sector
Fethullah Gulen’s statement on World Press Freedom Day
Gülen’s brother at risk of death in prison
Woman miscarries twins after arrest, struggles for her life in prison
Establishing a Culture of Coexistence and Mutual Understanding Conference Kicks off in Nigeria
We must have more empathy for people fleeing for their lives around the world
Opposition up in arms over Erdoğan’s badmouthing of Turkish schools abroad during visit to Ethiopia