EU denies claims of designating Gülen group as ‘terrorist org’ in report


Date posted: April 15, 2018

The European Union has denied claims by the Turkish press that it has, for the first time, called the Gülen movement a ‘terrorist’ organization in its upcoming progress report slated to be published on Tuesday.

A source who spoke to Ahvalnews on the condition of anonymity categorically denied claims made by Turkish media sources such as NTV and left-wing Birgün daily, stressing that the draft report is identical to last year’s on the Gülen movement and ”F..Ö” is referred to as government lexicon on the movement.

In the EU’s last progress report on Turkey, published in Nov. 2016, there were 28 references made to the Gülen movement, none of them referring to the group as ‘terrorist’.

The 2016 report said, ”The government attributed the organisation of the coup attempt to the Gülen movement.” In another reference, the report said, ”In May, the President and the government announced that the Gülen movement was formally included in the list of terrorist organisations kept but not disclosed by the National Security Council.”

The list of terror organizations is created by the Interior Ministries of the EU member states; designating an organization as a terrorist structure does not fall under the tasks of the EU Commission.

The EU’s terror list was established following the 9/11 attacks. At the time, the Turkish Minister of Justice Hikmet Sami Turk lobbied in Brussels to include the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) and the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front (DHKP-C) on the list. These organizations were later included in the list.

The current EU list makes no mention of ”F..Ö,” but contains several organizations with which Turkish authorities have contacts.

Pro-government NTV news website and other media sources such as leftist Birgün daily today published claims that the EU’s latest progress report will describe what the Turkish government has labelled the Fethullahist Terror Organization (F..Ö) and accuses of masterminding the July 2016 coup, as a terror group.

In the upcoming report, which has been described as German broadcaster Deutsche Welle as Turkey’s ‘’most damning evaluation yet,’’ precautions taken by Ankara in order to protect its democratic institutions will be described as ‘’legitimate,’’ the NTV news site said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan continues to lash out at the West for their failure to recognize the group as a terrorist organization.

Composed of the followers of exile preacher Fethullah Gülen, the Gülent movement, or ‘’F..Ö’’ as described by the government, was allied to Turkey’s governing Justice and Development Party (AKP) until a power struggle divided the groups in 2013.

 

Source: Ahvalnews , April 15, 2018


Related News

Disregard call to close Turkish schools – Proprietors tell Nigerian govt

Owners of the Nigeria Turkish International College have urged Nigeria to disregard the call by the Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Hakan Cakil, to close its schools in the country.

Gülen’s lawyer condemns Erdoğan’s accusations, TÜSİAD calls for sanity in country

Prominent Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen’s lawyer, Nurullah Albayrak, condemned Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s latest comments about Gülen.

Gülen’s followers banned from mosque in Germany

According to a video posted by Mehmet Cerit, the editor of Zaman Vandaag, an overseas subsidiary of the government-seized Turkish daily Zaman, a man is seen turning away the people whom he considered Hizmet members, just before the Friday prayer in a mosque in Germany.

Turkey’s Witch-Hunt Against the Gülen Movement Should Stop

The relationship between AKP and Hizmet fell apart in late 2013 after allegations of corruption were made against the Erdogan government by an allegedly “parallel structure” within the state and supposed shadow fifth column controlled by the Gülen Movement.

UN to Turkey: Free and Compensate Gulen-linked Detainees

Turkey must release two men detained over suspected links to a cleric blamed for a 2016 coup attempt and pay them compensation for arbitrary detention, a UN body said on Wednesday.

Gülen’s lawyer warns about possible doctored tapes

Lawyer Nurullah Albayrak in a written statement referred to lies and defamation about Gülen in the media which have become widespread and said Gülen’s phone calls have been illegally wiretapped. “These calls are reported in the media without taking any ethical principles into consideration,” he said, adding that it is very likely there will be edited phone calls as part of a black propaganda campaign against Gülen.

Latest News

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

University refuses admission to woman jailed over Gülen links

In Case You Missed It

Fethullah Gulen responds to videocassette allegations

Bal asks whether Erdoğan is trying to suppress religious communities

Germany’s dialogue awards find their recipients

Candidates on ‘red list’ denied jobs despite high test scores, Taraf reports

8-year-old cancer patient departs to Germany for treatment without parents due to ongoing travel ban

Turkish citizens keen to return to Yemen after conflict settled

Erdogan Uses Coup Like Hitler Used Reichstag Fire, Austrian Far-right Leader Says

Copyright 2024 Hizmet News