The headline of this column belongs to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. He said it during his party’s parliamentary group meeting on Tuesday.
The prime minister, who has directed harsh insults at the Hizmet movement and Fethullah Gülen in all the speeches he has made since the corruption investigation went public, continued to do so on Tuesday, too. He had previously called the Hizmet movement a “dirty organization,” “instrument of foreign powers,” “parallel organization” and “Hashishins.” On Tuesday, he defined the movement as the “last gang.” Saying that his government has fought against gangs, military juntas and tutelage as well as other deep powers, the prime minister added, “There will not be any obstacle in the way of democracy when this last gang becomes a thing of the past.” He also said his government managed to stop the “Dec. 17 coup attempt.” In addition, he accused Hizmet of spying and added, “The responsible figures and evidence [of a coup attempt] will soon be exposed.” The prime minister has put forward many claims since Dec. 17, but he has not provided any satisfactory evidence to back up these claims. I wonder how he will prove his allegations of spying.
Abduction and torture part of war on Gulenists: Report
An Ankara-based rights organization on Thursday released a report delving into the allegations of enforced disappearances and torture that took place in Turkey since the 2016 coup bid. The report reads in its conclusion that out of 28 cases of disappearance, 26 were connected to the persecution of alleged Gulenists, while suggesting at least 16 of them were detained in the capital city of Ankara.
ABA urges Obama to protest Turkey’s suppression of free speech
On September 1, the American Booksellers Association joined American publishers, authors, and librarians in a letter urging President Obama to protest the widespread suppression of free speech in Turkey during his September 4 meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan in China.
Turkey’s Brain Drain and the Disappearing Academic Freedom
Hasan was the luckiest because he was not in Turkey during the coup. He was studying abroad on July 15th and learned the coup through the Internet. He was supposed to go back to Turkey but he decided not to do so because of the news on the immense purging in mostly the government and some private institutions. Few days after the coup he learned that he was dismissed from his position at a state university.
Biden’s office refutes Turkish minister’s claim that US has proof Gülenists plotted coup
US Vice President Joe Biden’s office refuted a claim made by Bekir Bozdağ, justice minister of Turkey, who said on Thursday night that Biden had confirmed that substantive information on the involvement of US-based Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen had been received by the US as part of an extradition request submitted by Ankara this month.
Erdogan’s Arch-Enemy Accuses Turkish President Of Staging Coup, Compares Him To Hitler
And as many expected, Erdogan once again accused Gulen of being responsible for the Friday coup, no matter how ridiculous such an allegation sounded. This time Turkey went so far as accusing the US of being “behind the coup” for harboring Gulen. As for Gulen’s position, he had denied as recently as yesterday.
MHP: Gov’t should not harass its citizens who open Turkish schools abroad
Vural said that if the government does not protect its citizens who are involved in the Turkish schools — which are affiliated with the Hizmet movement, inspired by the teachings of US-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gülen — but instead complains about them to international governments, questions need to be asked.
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Abundant accusations [against Hizmet], little evidence