Albania deports Gülen follower at Turkey’s request despite court rejection of extradition


Date posted: January 3, 2020

Albanian authorities on Wednesday deported Harun Çelik, a Turkish teacher at a school affiliated with the faith-based Gülen movement in Albania, to Turkey despite a court order releasing him from his five-month incarceration over an extradition request from Ankara.

Çelik, 41, was reportedly arrested five months ago at Turkey’s request, but the court denied the extradition.

According to Bold Medya, Çelik was released from prison on Wednesday evening, when the Albanian police picked him up for transport to Tirana’s Rinas International Airport.

He had applied for asylum in the country five months ago, but officials have not yet proceeded with the request, the report said.

Turkey had previously been able to bring Gülen-affiliated individuals back home without official extradition processes in Kosovo and Moldova.

Turkish officials claim more than 100 Gülen followers have been brought back to the country since a failed 2016 coup.

Ankara accuses the Gülen movement of orchestrating the coup, although it strongly denies any involvement.

Source: Turkish Minute , January 1, 2020

Tags: | | | | | |


Related News

Gülen says praying for kidnapped schoolgirls, Nigerian people

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen has said he is praying for kidnapped schoolgirls, their families and the Nigerian people, calling on the kidnappers to immediately free the girls.

Policeman, teacher wife and premature baby under arrest over Gülen links

Fatma Cetin, an Erzurum teacher who was earlier dismissed from public school as part of the post-coup crackdown against the Gülen movement, has been under arrest along with her premature baby, Sozcu columnist Emin Colasan revealed.

Exiled Turkish Leader Gulen Slams Erdogan for Coup Attempt in Report

A coup attempt in Turkey last July that killed more than 300 people was an “outrageous, heinous scenario constructed by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his accomplices,” Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen said this week.

21 NGO’s Address President to Grant Refugee Status to Mustafa Emre Çabuk in Georgia

21 Georgian NGOs have recently signed a joint statement addressing the President of Georgia, with a request to grant refugee status to Mustafa Emre Çabuk and his family, with the statement being published on Georgian Young Lawyer’s Association website.

Istanbul court re-arrests former Zaman reporter minutes before leaving prison

Ayşenur Parıldak, a former reporter from the now-closed Zaman daily, was released early on Tuesday but was re-arrested by the same court hours before leaving prison upon a prosecutor objected to the initial ruling.

Ishik University To Educate Students About the Threats of [the so-called] Islamic State

The President of Ishik University Prof. Ahmet Oztas mentioned that the staff and instructors of the university are strongly against the message of IS. They echo the official line of Gulen, that believes that Islamic State must be fought. He emphasized that IS militants are the enemy of all humanity, Turkey, Kurdistan, US and democracy, and it is the duty of all people to fight against them to the best of their ability.

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

Scholars at Abant Meeting call for EU negotiations, domestic reform

Turkmen Alevite Association and Kimse Yok Mu distribute aid to 1840 families in Ramadan

Turkish IT Technician Found Dead While Fleeing To Greece

‘Mr. Gülen is to me simultaneously both incredibly modest and a visionary’

Philippine army awards Kimse Yok Mu for aid and contribution to peace

Lynching of the Hizmet movement by the hand of the state

TV series shooting banned over controversial scene depicting the Prophet Muhammad

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News