D.C.-based law firm gathers intel on U.S. residents for Turkey – WSJ


Date posted: November 15, 2019

The Turkish government has employed a Washington D.C.-based law firm to gather information on its critics, including U.S. residents, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

The Journal reviewed documents showing that the Turkish Embassy had employed the Saltzman & Evinch law firm to gather intel on associates of Fethullah Gülen, an Islamist preacher living in self-exile in Pennsylvania whose religious movement Turkey blames for a coup attempt in 2016.

The firm, which specialises in matters related to Turkey, compiled information on suspected Gülenists using public databases and social media for Turkey’s foreign and justice ministries, the Journal said.

The firm’s principal Gunay Evinch is a co-chairman of the Turkish-American National Steering Committee, a U.S.-based lobbying group. A lawyer at the firm, Rümeysa Kalın Karabulut, is the daughter of Erdoğan spokesman İbrahim Kalın while associate attorney Rachel Cerqueira Denktaş is married to the son of Turkish Republic of North Cyprus founder and former president Raif Denktaş.

Once an ally of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government, the Gülen movement became one of its most reviled adversaries after the government blamed Gülenist prosecutors for launching a corruption probe on top ministers in 2013.

The movement was widely believed to have seized influential positions in state institutions, but Erdoğan dismissed or jailed tens of thousands of suspected Gülenists in a series of purges after the July 2016 coup attempt.

The purge has also taken place on a global scale, with Turkish authorities pressuring governments around the world to shut schools linked to the movement and hand over alleged followers of Gülen.

Source: Ahval , November 14, 2019

Tags: | | | |


Related News

The Fountain 100th Issue Essay Contest

With its 100th issue, The Fountain invites you to join us in our celebration. Write in an essay a projection of yourself on your 100th birthday. What would you say to yourself at that age? What would your 100-year-old self tell you back? Would it be a conversation of praise and/or regret? Praise for achievements in your career, but regrets for a destroyed family? Warnings for the mistakes you did in your projected future or you will do in your past; pitfalls you happened to be dragged into, temptations you could not resist; or celebrations for the good character you were able to display and sustain a whole life, a precious life wasted or a life lived as it was meant to be.

The real issue is the National Security Council [in Turkey]

A recent report by the Taraf daily indicating that the National Security Council (MGK) had formed a plan to destroy the Gülen movement has sparked discussions. This is only natural, considering that the current political administration is known for its adherence to religious values. This report is huge news because the government failed to oppose the military in the MGK meeting.

Georgia: MEP Rebecca Harms on Asylum for Cabuk

Member of European Parliament Rebecca Harms, on a visit to Georgia to lobby for Mustafa Cabuk’s asylum in Georgia, visited Cabuk in prison. Prior to her visit, GEORGIA TODAY met her for an exclusive interview.

Gülen says many would like to be in detained journalists’ shoes

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen has said he believes many people, including he himself, would like to be in the shoes of Zaman daily Editor-in-Chief Ekrem Dumanlı and Samanyolu Broadcasting Group General Manager Hidayet Karaca, who were detained in a police operation on Sunday, implying that it is an honor for the journalists to be in custody under Turkey’s current circumstances.

Turkey Coup Attempt Leaves America With Stark Choice

In the aftermath of Turkey’s attempted, and failed, coup, Washington is primarily concerned about the future of the U.S.-Turkish alliance and its central objective these days: the fight against Islamic State (ISIS). In particular, U.S. policymakers are concerned about the fate of U.S. access to the Turkish airbase at Incirlik, from which assets used in […]

Protests against likely closure of Pak-Turk schools in Pakistan

The Pak-Turk school network students and their parents’ protested against the likely closure of the educational set-up following the two-day state visit by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the federal government’s decision to deport teachers affiliated with Pak-Turk International Schools and Colleges.

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

Türksat removes Zaman, 3 others from ad list

Interview with Gulen in Kenya’s Daily Nation

Dissidents of the Turkish government are living in fear in Canada

Turkish Cleric, Accused in Coup Plot, Calls Crackdown ‘Dark Pages’ in History

South Africa is not a hunting ground for Erdogan

Gülen denies attempting to axe peace process

Georgia refuses refugee status to detained ‘Gülen school manager’

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News